Roots
by Karume
Summary: When an accident happens after-hours to Hinata in the gym, Kageyama finds it upon himself to take care of the smaller half of his duo. During a three-day training camp he finds himself facing his fears and uncovering new ones, discovering that the roots of his team and his relationships are stronger than he originally thought.
1. Chapter 1

Hi all! I formed the idea for this fanfiction in the middle of the night, barely awake so I'm somewhat impressed that I've managed to create an entire story based off of it. These first four chapters I've already written in advance, so I decided to just post them all in one day. Enjoy the story and please leave a review if you'd like!

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There was always something calming about the blissful moments before a storm to Keishin Ukai. It was the way the leaves went still, and the birds stopped singing. To him, it were as if the world was holding its breath. He glanced out of the gym windows, peacefully watching the light of the day fade away.

"Look out!" A voice called out from the distance, breaking his spell of tranquility. The store owner leapt to his feet to avoid a rogue ball flying his way. Silently he thanked his years of volleyball playing for drilling such quick reflexes into him.

He spun around on one heel, ready to unleash hell upon whomever had dared to breach his moment of clarity. There, bowing at nearly a ninety-degree angle stood Asahi. The gentle giant had clearly meant no harm, though Ukai enjoyed to see such a large player apologize so profusely.

"Sumimasen, Ukai-sensei!" He called out, breathing heavily from his previous rounds of jump serves.

"Don't mind, don't mind," Ukai called back. "Alright everyone, let's pick up and head out for the night. I don't want you looking weak in front of Nekoma tomorrow." They were headed off to a three-day training camp in the suburbs of Tokyo for a few more practice matches before the spring tournament.

Ukai sighed and stepped outside, lighting a cigarette. It had only been a few weeks since their loss to Aoba Johsai, but the defeat was still heavy in every team member's eyes. You could see it in Daichi's eyes, in Noya's dives. The entire team was still left picking up the pieces of their resolve after that match. Day by day it seemed to be getting better, but the knowledge that they would most likely face Aoba Johsai again and even the dreaded Shiratorizawa dragged on Ukai's mind like a chain.

"Ah, see you tomorrow, Ukai-sensei," Suga called out, a hand outstretched in goodbye. Ukai nodded in response. The setter was working harder than ever before- they all were. It was nice to see that he and Chikara Ennoshita were slowly becoming the anchors of the team, unwavering in stormy waters.

Ukai let out a puff of smoke that vanished in the dying light, glancing at the clouds that darkened the sky.

Storms normally left him relaxed. This one kept him on edge.

Hinata was still bouncing a ball around, stubbornly refusing to leave the gym. Part of it was the desire to keep practicing, the fierce passion for volleyball that kept him rooted in the gym. The other part was that he was already practically bouncing off the walls with excitement for the trip tomorrow. His family rarely ever left their hometown, a small village near Karasuno High, so Tokyo was always new and exciting for him. Plus, he would get to see Kenma again.

"Hey, dumbass, what're you standing around for?" Kageyama yelled out, helping wheel the carts of balls away from the court.

"Oi, Bakayama-kun, throw me a toss!" Hinata made large, exaggerated gestures with his hands, miming the motions of a spike. He ducked unter Kageyama's arm as it came swooping for him and nimbly danced out of the way. If there was one thing he could beat Kageyama with, it would be his agility.

Other than the quick swipe, Kageyama continued to ignore Hinata. Although he was used to it, the smaller teen could never quite shake the feeling of being overlooked. It was one thing to be called short. It was another to be underestimated.

Soon enough the gym had cleared save for Kageyama, Hinata, and Takeda. The faculty advisor was continuously yawning, clearly worn out for the day.

"Oh, Takeda-sensei! If you want, Kageyama and I can lock up when we're finished," Hinata graciously offered. He could see the bags under his sensei's eyes.

"Are you sure you'll be alright? Well, okay then. See you tomorrow." Takeda left the gym, ready to sleep and make the trip tomorrow. As he waved to the retreating back of Takeda, Hinata failed to notice Kageyama standing next to him.

"Bah! Kageyama! You scared me like 'Bwah'!" The orange-haired spiker jumped back, a bird frightened into flight.

Kageyama pointed at a corner in the gym, where some volleyballs were stuck in a nook between the wall and a supporting beam.

"I'm going to go get a ladder and get those."

"What do you mean, _I_ ," Hinata asked, offended by Kageyama excluding him from the task at hand.

"Idiot, it only takes one person to get a ladder," Kageyama huffed and spun around, marching with all the regality of a king to retrieve a ladder.

Hinata waited, alone. He waited, and waited. As impatient as he was, he knew Kageyama would have his head if he tried anything or messed anything up.

After a while, Hinata gave up. He decided to get the balls himself. It was getting late and was starting to rain, and he wanted to get home before the storm hit. Anyways, he was the invincible spiker from Karasuno, the little number ten that struck fear into the hearts of giants. He had spiked a ball into Kageyama's head before. How hard could this possibly be?

Hinata remembered a time from his past, one of his earlier memories as a child.

 _The kitten was stuck in the tree, mewling for its mother. It was lost and alone, and no one else seemed to be willing to help it. Hinata grabbed the lowest branch of the tree and swung himself upwards with all of his might, kicking the rough bark of the thick trunk. The kitten sat, clinging onto a thin branch with all the strength it could muster. Hinata reached out to grab it by the scruff of its neck, but the kitten gracefully pulled itself up and nimbly maneuvered its way to the bottom, flicking its tail as it bounded away from the tree. Hinata, only six, began to make his way back down the tree, not realizing before it was too late just how high he had traveled up. He panicked, scrabbling for a hold on a branch, crying for his mother. His arms were weak and thin, and gave up not soon after. He was falling, falling back to earth, crashing into the ground._

Things were different now, just about ten years later. Hinata had climbed plenty of trees in his lifetime. This shouldn't be too different. He eyed the support beam with hungry eyes and made his way towards the tall pole. The spiker began working his way up the pole, sticking his tongue out to concentrate on the task at hand. He found the first ball, wrestling it out of the wedge it was in and letting it fall to the ground.

Come to think of it, the ground was a far way down.

Like, really far.

Hinata began to panic. His breathing became constricted and his heartbeat rapid like that of a hummingbird's. _Crap_. He thought as his eyes began to blur.

His arms suddenly felt weak. His head started to spin. He was getting dizzy.

 _Boom. Boom. Boom._ His heart pounded in his ears. _Boom. Boom. Boom._ What if he didn't make it to the ground? _Boom. Boom. Boom._ Would his team move on without him?

It was likely, he realized. He could be forgotten. Ignored.

Just a speck on the face of the Earth.

Kageyama returned, practically dragging the ladder behind him. The basketball team was using it to raise one of their hoops, so he had had to wait for them to finish up. He didn't mind. It gave him time to think. To be alone.

Unaware of his surroundings, Tobio entered the gym. Not long after he noticed the unusual silence that had settled over the gym.

The calm before a storm.

Only then did he realize.

Where was Hinata?

He set the ladder down and observed a ball rolling towards him. He picked it up and spun it around in his hands, tracing over the gentle creases. He looked in the direction the ball had come from. Then he looked up.

There was Hinata, clinging to the support beam like it was his lifeline. His eyes were distant, his face completely devoid of emotion.

Kageyama knew that look.

Hinata had that look on his face. It was the look on his face when he cowered behind Tanaka, when a larger foe had stood in front of him. It was the look on his face whenever someone mentioned switching him out, and the look he wore when Kageyama had once said he would not toss to him. That look was one of fear.

"Hinata!" A scream ripped out of Tobio's throat. He paused for a moment, unsure if that had been his voice making that noise.

"Hinata!" Kageyama called, louder this time. He had to get Hinata down from the beam, or…

No. He wouldn't think about that.

"Shouyou!" He called desperately. The last time Hinata wore this face, the only person who was able to snap him out of his petrified state was Suga. And he certainly didn't possess any of the same qualities as the upperclassman.

Hinata came back to the present as soon as he heard his given name being used. The only people who ever used that name were Kenma and his parents, both who he saw few and far between because of school, volleyball, and simply physical distances. Not to mention that in a family with a younger sister (who was quite the handful) and another sister on the way, it was easy for Hinata to be overlooked at times.

Yet there was Tobio Kageyama, of all people, screaming his name. His teammate stood in a stance somehow more rigid than his usual one, but his scowl was replaced by something else. Fear? No, it couldn't be. Hinata was imagining it.

"Get down from there, forget the balls!" Kageyama screamed, and Hinata heard him this time.

Kageyama watched, barely breathing, as Hinata inched his way down the pole. Nothing bad would happen, right? This was Hinata he was talking about. The one who claimed that they would be invincible so long as they were a team.

Kageyama stopped moving. Stopped breathing. The calm before the storm.

Then everything happened all too quickly, yet slowly at the same time.

Hinata was falling.

Kageyama was reaching out.

This was a nightmare. This had to be a nightmare. This couldn't be real, right?

Tobio remembered how Hinata had described it, seeing the other side of the net when he spiked. He told of the moment of clarity, how everything slowed down. How he could see.

Kageyama could see.

He could see Hinata's helpless body falling to the ground. If he was one step too late, one second too late…

Hinata knew it was over as soon as he lost his grip on the beam. His hands slipped, and he was falling. Was this it?

He crashed into a surprisingly soft ground, but was unable to prevent his brain from rattling in his skull from the impact. Safe. Was he safe?

Kageyama was terrified to open his eyes. Terrified to open his eyes and see Hinata injured, or possibly dead. In his mind he saw flashes of what might have happened- he saw Hinata, lying on the ground. Unmoving. A crumpled heap. Too still to be Hinata. He was too scared to open his eyes, before he heard the rasp, the struggle for breath. The fight for survival.

He opened his eyes. His vision was filled with an orange Halo. He reached a shaky hand up to touch it, to see if it was real. It was soft, although messy. It was real.

Kageyama breathed for the first time in what felt like years.

"Hinata?" He barely whispered. The small boy had only fallen about three meters up off the ground. Kageyama must have managed to catch him, or at the very least provide a softer landing.

Tobio sat up, for once grateful for Hinata's small stature. He assessed the situation- Hinata was breathing, that was good.

"K...ageyama?" Hinata coughed out. He was awake too, that was good.

Tobio gently removed Hinata from him, moving to prop him up against the very beam from which he fell.

"I'm right here," he wanted to add "dumbass" to the end of his sentence, but refrained from doing so. Now was not the time. "Are you hurt?"

"I… can't tell." Shouyou's eyes were wide with fear, and his entire body was trembling as the adrenaline began to leave his system.

Kageyama began to gingerly check Hinata for any injuries, asking question after question.

"Does that hurt?"

"No, now stop acting weird."

"I'm not acting weird, dumbass."

Hinata pushed himself onto his elbows, his eyes focusing on a large bruise forming on Kageyama's elbow. Tobio hadn't noticed it himself.

"I did that to you." Hinata choked out. He started tearing up as guilt washed through his system.

As soon as Kageyama realized Hinata was crying, he panicked. Sure, he could serve and set with no problem, but it wasn't hard to figure out that he was extremely awkward in social situations. Suga or even Tanaka would know how to handle this, but Kageyama was lost.

Hinata all but threw himself at Kageyama, wrapping his arms around his neck and sobbing into the cotton fabric of his shirt. Unsure of what to do with his arms, Tobio awkwardly patted the small teen on the back, trying to remember how his mother used to console him.

Unfortunately, he couldn't remember the last time that was.

Not long after, Hinata withdrew himself from Kageyama, drying his eyes with his arm. He was clearly embarrassed by what had happened. Kageyama chose not to mention it, instead standing up.

"Can you get up?"

Hinata shakily attempted to rise to his feet, grabbing on to Kageyama's arm when his knees buckled.

Tobio felt nauseous watching him attempt to stand. This was not Hinata. This was not the number ten who could shock everyone with his speed and his determination. This was not the boy who had managed to surprise Kageyama back in his days as the King, when he leapt so high he practically flew. What happened to that boy?

Kageyama helped Hinata to his feet and wrapped one of the teen's arm around his neck, saying nothing as he bent down to help him limp out the door.

"Should I call an ambulance?" He asked, seriously considering the possibility. He had no clue damage could have been done to his teammate.

"No!" Hinata yelled. He removed his arm from Kageyama's neck and limped to the door without any support. There was no way he was going to leave the team mid-season for a couple of bruises.

The taller teen sighed, but Hinata had made his decision perfectly clear. Anyways, why should Kageyama care? As soon as he caught himself thinking that, he froze. His mind flashed back to that day. He remembered the sinking feeling, the crunch of his heart as the ball smashed against the court floor, no one waiting to retrieve his toss. He had changed. He was on a team now.

"Oi, bakayama, you coming?" Hinata called, as if he hadn't just fallen off of a support beam in pursuit of a volleyball. The fatigue under his eyes was evident, though. The fall had taken its toll on him, as well as a long day of practice and school.

As they shut off the lights and locked the gym doors, a silent agreement was made between the two- whatever happened in that gym would stay locked in that gym.

With the stress of the previous events, both of them hadn't noticed the rain pouring from the night sky. Lightning flashed and thunder boomed, causing Kageyama to jump back.

Hinata turned around in shock, facing the taller boy,

"Say, Kageyama, are you afraid of thunderstorms?" he asked.

"No, moron!" Kageyama scowled, but cowered at the next clash of sound. Hinata laughed, chattering about how much he loved storms. Kageyama made his way for the door, grabbing his bag and hoisting it over his head, turning and locking the gym doors behind him. Hinata followed close behind, grabbing his bike and attempting to get one.

"Don't even try, you'll hurt yourself again," Kageyama reached for the bike and walked with it, wheeling it next to him.

"What's it to you?" Hinata muttered, kicking at the ground.

"You're my teammate. Without you, volleyball wouldn't be the same," Kageyama stated simply and turned his face away from the other boy, whose eyes widened. To the both of them, volleyball was essentially their entire worlds.

"Anyways there's no way you're making it home in this, we can go to my place. My parent's aren't home this week anyways." Kageyama huffed, knowing there was another reason for him inviting Hinata to his house, but not quite being able to place a finger on it. The rain continued to pour, drenching them from head to toe, washing the evidence of their secret away.

Another clash of thunder sounded, and once more Kageyama flinched.

"Have I ever told you that I'm afraid of heights?" Hinata mused, already launching into tales of his past. The way he so smoothly calmed Tobio of his fear filled him with wonder. What also filled him with wonder was how stupid someone with a fear of heights must be to become a spiker and to recklessly climb a pole, but this was Hinata after all.

The pair made their way to Kageyama's house, side by side. Tobio looked up at the tango of lightning and thunder that was developing in the sky. It didn't look like the storm would be over anytime soon.


	2. Chapter 2

Hey all! So I get into these moods where I want to do nothing but write, and for the past few weeks I've been in one so enjoy this little fanfiction. :)

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' _The rain pounded against the windows and the door as if it were demanding to be let in the house. Over and over again, thunder shook the tiny nine-year old's frame as he cowered in the corner of his room, clutching a pillow to his face. Tears streaked Kageyama's face as they made their way down his puffy cheeks. The power had gone out long ago, and the storm had only picked up ever since. He trembled at how helpless he felt against the raging storm. "Okaasan!" He called out for his mother, but no reply came. He was alone, in the darkness. Like always.'_

There was something about seeing Kageyama so tense that put Hinata on guard. The raven-haired teen looked like a rubber band waiting to snap as the he flitted from room to room, gathering blankets and towels. It was also amusing to see him so homey. He chuckled to himself before feeling the dark glare of the king drilling through his shoulders.

"What are you laughing at, dumbass?" Kageyama furrowed his brows. The storm was only getting worse. Soon they might not have power, and what would happen then? He imagined trees crashing through the roof, windows blowing out. He was well his fear was irrational, but he couldn't help it.

"Kageyama, you're shaking," Hinata commented, failing to mask the hint of concern creeping into his voice.

"Am not, _teme_ ," Tobio growled, cursing at himself for looking so weak. If his mom ever saw him like this, she would probably slap him, tell him to toughen up. She was his mother though, and he always believed she was right.

A crash shook the frame of his house, sending a shiver down Kageyama's spine and chilling him to the core. ' _Why does he look so calm?'_ Tobio glanced at the smaller boy who was following him around the house, gaping at every decoration and room. He had never had guests over before, so he wasn't exactly sure if what he was doing was correct.

"Your house is so big!" Hinata gushed, bouncing behind him. Kageyama merely grunted in response. Sure, he had a big house, but to him it was no home. The walls were completely devoid of family photos, and not a thing was out of place. At times it felt like a military camp, but that couldn't be helped.

Soon enough the two ended up in Kageyama's room, who was lugging a basket of towels and extra blankets and pillows. He set it down with an ' _oof'_ and turned to look at Hinata. He threw a towel and an extra change of clothes at him, who accepted them without a word.

"I'm showering first," Kageyama announced, grabbing a towel from the hand-woven basket.

"No fair! I'm the guest so I should get to shower first," Hinata whined, the pitch of his voice rising higher than before.

"Oh, really?" Kageyama challenged, hesitating for a moment before dashing off to the bathroom. He ran as fast as his legs could carry him before he realized his teammate was not behind him. They were usually neck-to-neck in competitions. He stopped in his tracks and whipped around.

Hinata was lying on the ground a few paces behind the setter, panting. His face was contorted with pain, and a whimper of pain escaped his lips. His usual fervor was gone like a candle blown out by the wind. Clearly the long days of training and the stress of his fall had begun to take a toll on him.

"Crap! Work you stupid legs!" Shouyou began beating his legs with his fist before he realized Kageyama was next to him, putting the smaller boy's arms around his shoulders and helping him to his feet.

"Calm down, moron. You can shower first then if you want," Kageyama sighed, smacking his forehead with his palm. Seeing the spiker so upset was something Kageyama wasn't used to in the least. What was he going to do if Hinata couldn't play? How would their team survive the tournaments?

"No, that's fine. I'm gonna go sit down for a while!" Hinata grinned from ear to ear, although Tobio knew the smile was false. Fabricated. He was likely still in pain.

Kageyama started up the shower and cranked the water heat as high as it could possibly go, mindlessly going through the motions of bathing. Letting the water run over him was something that always soothed him and let him clear his mind. When he was finished, he quickly changed and headed back to his room.

"Oi, moron, I'm done," he announced as he entered his room. Hinata, however, was already fast asleep on his bed, curled around a pillow. Almost peaceful. He looked like a doll sleeping there, so lifelike and still. Kageyama watched the gentle rise and fall of his teammate's chest, considering waking him up and telling him to move off of his bed. In the end he decided it would be best to allow him to sleep after such a terrifying event. To be truthful, Kageyama was surprised that he could sleep at all with the combination of the stress of the fall and the excitement of the tournament.

As gently as he could, Tobio shifted Hinata under the covers and pulled them over his balled-up body and sighed. The last time he could remember anyone doing that for him was far too long ago. The memories of his childhood had begun to fade, but it wasn't that it mattered too much anyhow. Many of those memories were not exactly the most pleasant and told stories of constant loneliness and exclusion. Denial and rejection.

The coldness of his middle school team had been the last straw. He had tried his hardest to be the best, yet it seemed like it was never enough. From that day on, he told himself he would be different. He never wanted to feel that again, the heartbreak of his team pushing him out. He would do anything to prevent that from happening again, even if it meant hiding himself from his team in fear of them not accepting him.

A strong gust of wind blew on his window, causing the panels to shake. He shivered and threw a blanket over the futon, shutting off the lights and resigning himself to a night of unrestful sleep in the wake of the storm.

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A pair of dark eyes shot open in the middle of the night, suddenly alert. Kageyama around, confused. Where was he? Why was he awake? The storm had passed, so it wasn't that. Somewhere in his room he heard a steady rhythm, someone breathing gently. Oh, right. He was home, and Hinata was in his bed.

The darkness felt like it was closing in on him, constricting his breathing. He tried to ignore it as much as possible but he couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong.

Then, a whimper. It was quiet, but it was there. Tobio wondered if he was imagining it, if it was nothing but a hallucination.

A quiet cry, a sob.

Kageyama wasn't imagining it, he was sure. He turned to face his bed, where the noise was coming from. Hinata was curled up in a ball tighter than before, as if he was trying to make himself so small that he could disappear. His face was tense and screwed upwards as if he were in pain and afraid at the same time. Kageyama was no genius, but it certainly didn't take a genius to recognize that someone was in a nightmare.

Hinata started to cry, still fast asleep. The light sobs shook his body as he continued trembling. The sight of his teammate in such agony tugged at Kageyama, unraveling the years of built-up emotional walls.

Should he wake him up? Tobio had no clue what to do. Whenever he had any nightmares, his parents would simply tell him to "stop being so weak" and deal with it himself, which led to countless sleepless nights staring at the very ceiling under which he lay.

Before he could make any sort of choice, however, Hinata woke up, gasping and panting as if a bucket of cold water had been dumped on him. Kageyama went still, watching Hinata's moonlit silhouette.

Hinata sat up and ran his hands through his hair, which was matted with beads of sweat. He hugged his knees to his chest, failing to calm his rapid heartbeat and ragged breathing.

"This is the eighth night in a row," he whispered out loud to what he thought was no one and pulled the sheets over his head. They smelled like, well… like Kageyama. Like volleyballs and the detergent he used to wash his uniform. Shouyou pulled himself out of the bed and started walking to the door with the intention of getting himself a glass of water. Then, he toppled over and crashed right into the futon.

Kageyama let out an undignified, startled yelp when Hinata came crashing on top of him, his heart racing at the sudden impact.

"Oi, Bakayama, you're awake? What're you doing on the floor?" Hinata questioned the other boy as he struggled to his feet, speaking in a hushed tone although no one was there.

"Well _now_ I'm awake, dumbass. You fell asleep in my bed, don't you remember?" He glared in the darkness at where he thought Hinata's head was. "What time is it?"

"I'm not sure, I just wanted a glass of water."

Kageyama sighed and rose to his feet, feeling around the side of the wall for the light switch and flipping it on. He spun on his heel and walked out his door, calling behind him for Hinata to follow. Should he ask him about the nightmare? It didn't seem right.

Tobio flipped on the lights in his kitchen and reached for a glass, effortlessly grabbing one out of the top shelf of his cabinet and filling it with water. He handed it to Hinata, who accepted it with shaking hands and promptly dropped it.

The glass shattered into a million little pieces, a puzzle of broken shards. Kageyama watched as his teammate bowed and began shouting apologies one after the other.

He placed a hand on Hinata's head with the intention to pull on his hair, but was taken aback when he noticed the boy stiffen and flinch away. He snatched his hand back as if it were on a hot iron and huffed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Don't mind," he waved Hinata's apologies away and reached for a broom, sweeping up the glass. The tiny shards sparkled brighter than stars in the bright light of his kitchen as he deposited them in the trash.

Kageyama grabbed a plastic cup out of a different cabinet, one of the ones he had used as a child. It was green with a character, likely out of some TV show but it was too faded to tell. He watched Hinata slowly sip the water, his hands still shaking. He leaned against his fridge, feeling the cold of the stainless steel soak into his back and faced Hinata who happened to be sitting on a bar stool.

"Are you going to tell me what that dream was about?"

Hinata froze, his face going white. He set the cup down on the counter and ran his hands through his hair. ' _He knows. Crap, he knows.'_ He thought, panicked. The dream came back in flashes. There was no way he could tell Kageyama what he saw. He would probably think he was weak or something. But when he finally met Kageyama's eyes, he was surprised to find himself staring into pools of masked concern, unable to detect a single hint of menace in them.

Slowly, he began.

"I was alone in the dark. My heart… it was beating so fast I thought it would burst." He grabbed the fabric which covered his chest and clutched it in his fist, reliving the terror that had haunted him for nights on end.

"Then, a fire lit the room. I was in the gym, but it was all like 'shhh'. Something wasn't right, I knew."

"I heard a whisper. Suga. He was… He was hurt. I looked at my hands" Bloody and dying, he wanted to say but couldn't bring himself to it.

"There was…" He swallowed, looking at Kageyama who nodded for him to continue.

"...so much blood."

"There was something at my feet. I looked down, and saw a number nine. Your number. Then everyone else. They were all dead and I was alive." His voice trailed off to a terrified whisper.

"You were dead." He looked away, not able to bring himself to continue or look at Kageyama.

He shivered as he heard Tobio's feet softly pad against the hardwood floors, closing the gap between the two. Cold fingers gently gripped the side of his face and pulled his chin up. He looked at the face of the taller boy, his mouth agape in surprise. He found himself looking into the regular scowl of Kageyama, which was reassuring in its own right. It made him feel like everything was normal.

"So you think I'm going to get scared and run away from you? It was a nightmare, big deal. I'm still going to toss to you, and as long as we're on the same team, I won't ever stop tossing to you."

Hinata stopped breathing. Shocked. Amazed. Was this the Kageyama Tobio he knew? Was this the same king who left him terrified he would some day not be good enough for him, who kept him worried of being put on the bench, ignored once more?

"Come on, dumbass. Go back to sleep It's almost eleven at night and we have to be on the bus at two in the morning." Kageyama released Hinata and began walking away, pondering what he had just been told. This was on his mind for over a week, this had been plaguing him for days on end and yet he had been able to continue on smiling like he usually had. Shouyou was stronger than he gave him credit for, he realized.

"Kageyama," Hinata paused in his tracks.

"Yeah?" Kageyama asked, wary.

"Thank you."

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Thanks for reading! If you'd like, please leave a review as it really does help me improve my writing. See you guys soon with another update!

~Karume


	3. Chapter 3

Hey guys! I feel weird because I'm uploading the first four chapters in one day, but after today I'll likely fall into a more regular updating schedule. I started uploading this on a different website but wanted to give here another try to see which one I liked more.

Without further adieu, enjoy this chapter!

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Takeda sighed as he boarded the bus, attempting to prepare himself for the ride ahead. Driving for several hours straight wasn't exactly something he looked forwards to, but he knew watching his team practice in the end would be worth it. The long trip was exhausting though, and Ukai did little to help him as he often fell asleep along with the rest of the team and would become irritable if woken.

"Alright, is everyone ready?" He asked as he closed the doors and headed up the stairs. Only silence greeted him, however, which was unusual for the volleyball club. Most of the members were already fast asleep, but it was hard to blame them. It was the middle of the night after all. Only Suga seemed to be walking around, handing out blankets to combat the December chill. Takeda's face stretched out with a yawn as he started the bus and set off on the long journey.

The chilly night did little to help Kageyama fall asleep, although it didn't pose much of an issue to the ginger sleeping soundly next to him. Nishinoya and Tanaka didn't seem to be bothered by it either as they practically fell asleep on top of one another.

He graciously accepted a blanket from Sugawara, politely thanking him and helping him to cover the gently-snoring Hinata with one. Kageyama was a light sleeper, and he seriously doubted that he would be able to rest up during the bumpy trip, but decided to wrap the blanket around his shoulders and attempt to sleep anyways. It was better than nothing.

' _Kageyama watched, barely breathing, as Hinata inched his way down the pole. Nothing bad would happen, right? This was Hinata he was talking about. The one who claimed that they would be invincible so long as they were a team._

 _Kageyama stopped moving. Stopped breathing. The calm before the storm._

 _Then everything happened all too quickly, yet slowly at the same time._

 _Hinata was falling._

 _Kageyama was reaching out._

 _This was a nightmare. This had to be a nightmare. This couldn't be real, right?_

 _Tobio remembered how Hinata had described it, seeing the other side of the net when he spiked. He told of the moment of clarity, how everything slowed down. How he could see._

 _Kageyama could see._

 _He could see Hinata's helpless body falling to the ground. If he was one step too late, one second too late…_

 _He reached out with his arms outstretched. He was too late._

 _Hinata's body crashed to the ground.'_

A bright flash woke Kageyama from his dream. Blinded by the sudden light, he blinked furiously. There stood Nishinoya, phone in hand, doubled over in silent laughter.

"I'm sorry," he wheezed, his voice barely above a whisper. "But you two…"

Tobio froze. The warmth on his side definitely wasn't because of the blanked Suga gave him. No- Hinata was curled into his side, his head in Kageyama's lap.

"You took a picture?!" Kageyama demanded, exasperated

"Yup! I'm going to send it to Kuroo!" Noya giggled, bouncing in place as his fingers flew across his phone screen. Kageyama threw back his head and groaned. His face felt hot- he was sure he had turned about twenty different shades of red.

Hinata chose that moment to move and somehow find the setter's hand, grasping it with the strength of an oxen, making Kageyama draw in a sharp breath.

"How long do I have to be on this stupid bus?" Kageyama asked through gritted teeth.

"I dunno, Takeda told me that we've only been on for about an hour. We probably have like four more to go, we've barely gotten over the mountain. Tanaka started kicking me in his sleep, the idiot." Nishinoya pranced back to his seat by Tanaka and curled into his blanket, his face illuminated by the light of his phone.

Kageyama looked down at Hinata, who's face was bright in the glow of passing streetlights. It didn't look like any nightmares were plaguing him anymore. That was good, at least. Then he remembered the dream he had.

Hinata's body crashed to the ground over and over in his mind. He relived that moment again and again. The way his head hit the ground. The crushing noise.

Kageyama shivered. If he had been too late when it actually happened…

But he hadn't been. And that was all that mattered. He still couldn't fight the goosebumps forming on his arms and the chills running down his back.

Hinata was alive. Wasn't he? He was breathing, and he was warm. He was alive.

About half an hour later, the bus pulled into a gas station. The members of Karasuno's volleyball club slowly awoke and clambered out of the bus to stretch their sore limbs. Hinata opened his eyes and found himself staring up at Kageyama's shirt. He bolted upright, embarrassed by the fact that he had fallen asleep on his teammate and dazed by the sudden disruption in his sleep. His head pounded and his mouth felt dry.

"Bakayama, where are we?" Shouyou asked, his voice gravelly. The sudden lapse in his memory left him feeling hazy and startled.

"Moron, did you really get that little sleep? We're on the bus and we just stopped at a gas station."

"I'm going to get some water." Hinata clambered into the aisle of the bus, followed by Kageyama. The other players were outside, laughing and pushing each other around. To any passerby, they probably looked like a group of thugs waiting to loot an innocent gas station at three in the morning, especially with Asahi among them.

The pair entered the store, Hinata calling out a drowsy greeting and sending a wave in the direction of the cashier before turning to the shelves and looking for something to drink. He reached for a water bottle before nearly toppling over onto Kageyama, who's quick reflexes allowed him to catch him without a second thought.

"Oi, what's with you, dumbass?" Kageyama demanded, pushing the smaller boy to his feet.

"'Dunno, I'm just so…," he yawned. "...tired." Hinata brought his drink over to the cashier before grabbing a milk box out of one of the fridges and setting it on the counter. It was the least he could do for Kageyama after all the taller boy had done for him.

They left the store and headed back into the brisk night-time air before a flash in the sky caught Hinata's attention.

"Yamayama! Did you see that?" He suddenly perked up, pointing to the area of the horizon where he had seen the lights. "I think it was a shooting star."

"I wish…" He began, not quite sure where he was going. "I wish that I could play volleyball forever." He smiled, shining as bright as a star in the sky.

He thought he saw a corner of Kageyama's mouth turn upwards, but it was gone nearly as fast as that comet.

"Yeah." Kageyama nodded in agreement and climbed the stairs of the bus. Daichi smiled at the two warmly and chuckled at Suga who had fallen asleep next to him. The soothing, soft baritone of his voice echoed throughout the silent bus.

Not long after they took their seats, Hinata was out like a lamp, but Kageyama was resigned to not sleeping for the remainder of his trip. His last dream had left him terrified to drift off in case he would see anything like it again. He shuddered and turned his attention over to the window, not looking back even when Hinata's sleeping form slumped against his shoulder.

He wished that things would never change.

* * *

The gentle light of day woke Hinata up, The sun was just beginning to rise, searing the sky with coats of red, yellow, and an orange that was almost as bright as his hair. Kageyama was staring out at the scenery. They were entering the suburbs of Tokyo after hours of driving.

"Huh, Kageyama, have you been awake this entire… WAH!" Hinata let out a yelp as Tobio slowly turned around, revealing the bags under his eyes and the sunken nature of his face. Since Noya had woken him up he hadn't been able to sleep again, terrified that the image of Hinata falling would haunt him once more.

"Kageyama, I think you've turned into a ghost!" Shouyou whispered a bit too loudly, laughing when Kageyama shot him a glare.

Before he knew it, they had arrived in front of a hotel. It didn't look like they would be staying with the other teams for this trip, but instead would be able to get their own hotel rooms thanks to the tireless advertising efforts of Yachi and an expanded budget from the dean.

Takeda passed out keycards and woke the still sleeping teens up.

"Don't lose your key cards, please. It was hard enough as it is to get this hotel to allow a group as rowdy as you to let us stay here. Be respectful. We don't have any practice today, so go enjoy the rest of the day." Takeda sent them off into the hotel to find their rooms.

"Wow! This place is amazing!" Hinata marvelled at everything, making Kageyama wonder if he had ever seen a world outside of the gym. Originally, they were going to share a room with Yamaguchi and Tsukki, but the blonde blocker had plainly refused to share a room with Hinata, granting the setter-and-spiker duo a room to themselves.

Shouyou flopped onto one of the two beds. The room was spacious enough, and had a nice view of the outskirts of Tokyo. A knock sounded at the door, causing both of them to turn their heads at the sudden noise.

"I'll get it! Hinata bounded towards the door, yanking it open to find the rest of his team waiting outside.

"We were going to go grab some barbecue. Want to come?" Daichi offered. "My treat."

In an instant the two had joined the group and were headed down to a traditional grill place, everyone buzzing with excitement.

"Hey, Kageyama, I heard your parents work for Toyota Motor," Tanaka stated between mouthfuls of meat and vegetables. Kageyama stiffened at the mention of his parents. Was that supposed to be a question?

"Yeah," Kageyama shrugged. The rest of the group stared in amazement, but to Tobio it looked more like they were ogling him as if he were some creature at the zoo. "They're both financial managers, though. It's not like they're CEO's or anything." His parents weren't anything to be amazed about.

Instantly noticing that he didn't want to talk about it, Hinata switched the topic and sent a sideways glance at Kageyama, who had started picking at his food.

Soon they were all stuffed and ready to head out, parting ways. Hinata somehow managed to drag Kageyama to a marketplace, grabbing a basket and loading it with anything that caught his eye.

"Dumbass, do you really need all that?" Kageyama asked, sighing. Hinata pouted and put it back, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.

"Gomen, it's just that my parents never take me shopping with them, and when they do I can't ever get anything. We're kind of tight on money right now…" He trailed off, clearly embarrassed that he had overshared. Kageyama reached over the pile of goods and plucked out a stuffed tiger, holding it up and looking questioningly at Hinata, who laughed.

"I had that exact one when I was younger," he giggled, hiding his smile under his palm. "Ya know, it almost reminds me of you in a way." Hinata flattened his hair and imitated the scowl that Kageyama wore almost constantly. "All serious and antisocial."

Tobio flared up, smacking Hinata repeatedly in the side with the tiger, half-stuttering, half-growling out that he was not antisocial in the least.

"Whatever. Do you really want that thing?" He huffed, glaring at the smaller boy. Kageyama grabbed a yogurt box and headed to the cashier, nearly throwing the toy onto the belt and pulling out his wallet. Before Hinata could realize what was happening, he had paid for the purchase and was angrily marching out of the store, clutching the stuffed toy.

Shouyou caught up with him, breathless from running and laughing so hard. A sudden, brisk wind blew through the streets. The duo stopped, looking at the sky.

White flakes of snow floated down from above, softly floating and landing on the ground. The world stopped for a moment. All went still as they watched and waited, snowflakes coating their hair and jackets. Hinata turned to Kageyama, suddenly remembering something.

"Kageyama, what day is it?" He cocked his head to the side. How could he forget?

"December 21st, I think? Why moron, did you forget something?" Kageyama responded, shivering in the cold. Hinata's smile only widened.

"It's the 22nd. Happy birthday."

The two stood peacefully as they watched the rare spectacle that had appeared before them, mesmerized by the white powder which was covering the earth.

All was calm. All was well.

* * *

Thanks for reading! As always, your support is greatly appreciated so please leave a review if you'd like.


	4. Chapter 4

The day began like any other.

Six o'clock. Ukai knocked on the door, yelling at the two to wake up. Kageyama pushed himself up out of the bed and pulled on a pair of practice shorts. He glanced at the spiker in the room, snorting at the sight of him having stubbornly shoved his head under his pillow.

"Oi, dumbass, if you don't get out of bed I'll be ready before you." The hint of competition sent the smaller boy flying out of his bed, pedaling his arms to get dressed as quickly as possible.

The pair headed downstairs for breakfast, joined on the elevator by Tanaka and Noya.

Seven o'clock. The team sat at a large table, waiting for breakfast. They looked like a large, boisterous family sitting there. Kageyama felt awkward, fidgeting with his hands under his table. He wasn't used to being a part of the conversation and was scared of saying something wrong. He never liked talking about himself.

What if his team wouldn't accept him?

Eight o'clock. They piled onto the bus, lugging volleyball gear behind them. Hinata was bouncing around with excitement, chattering on and on about seeing Kenma again. Kageyama ignored him. Ukai explained the penalties of losing sets. It was just like any other training camp.

They arrived at the gym, greeted by Nekoma and scattered members from other teams. Bokuto fell into stride next to Kageyama, bragging about how he had no doubt he would beat the first-year duo from Karasuno. Tobio ignored him, which sent the ace scurrying off to mope. He was here to prove himself and train. Nothing else.

Nine o'clock. Karasuno began their warm-up, running laps around the gym. They stretched. Kageyama and Hinata usually ran ahead of the flock, but Hinata stuck behind today, earning him concerned looks from his teammates. He "was saving his strength for later", he claimed. Anyone who looked closely enough could see that wasn't the case- he tried to conceal it, but a look of pure fatigue was plastered on his face. Like a sick bird, Kageyama thought. Birds had a tendency to conceal sickness until they could fake it no more- or until it was too late.

They began their first set against Fukurōdani. Both teams played lightly, cracking jokes on both sides of the net. Kageyama took no part in this, his usual scowl masking his face. Asahi served. Haruki Komi, their libero, received. A toss went up to Bokuto. Kageyama jumped to block, a beat too late. The spike went cross-court, straight into the arms of Daichi and flew back to him. Tanka or Hinata, which one would he toss to? Both had already been marked by the opposing side's defense. Neither.

He tapped the ball over the net, a dump.

His team celebrated the point, Daichi ruffling his hair.

One point down, twenty-four more to go.

Ten o'clock. They won their set against Fukurōdani, and moved on to lose one against Nekoma. Kageyama glared at the retreating back of Kenma. The boy had no visible drive, no real passion for the sport. Why was he always unable to read him?

Karasuno lined up for their first penalty, ball dives.

Eleven o'clock. It was finally time for lunch. Everyone was ravenous, staring hungrily at the cafeteria doors, waiting for food. The team managers began walking out, carrying a plethora of colorful dishes. Tanaka and Noya eyed Kiyoko, going on and on about how beautiful and kind her soul was, taking care and feeding them. Kageyama always admired how aloof their older manager was and her ability to ignore the tiresome pair.

Twelve o'clock. The group split up and headed back to the gym. Kageyama and Hinata were walking alone in an empty hallway. An unusual silence hung heavily between the two. For once, the smaller teen wasn't bustling with excitement and talking Kageyama's ear off. Tobio found his current lack of annoyance at Hinata well, annoying. The fact that he couldn't simply tune out the silence frustrated him to no end.

"I think… I'm going to be sick," Hinata huffed, turning sharply on his heel and running into a nearby bathroom. The setter sighed and paused in the middle of the hall, waiting for the other boy. At least it wasn't on Tanaka's lap this time.

Minutes ticked past. Tobio's concern grew large enough to balance out his exasperation. He pushed open the bathroom door. Hinata was leaning against the bathroom door, panting heavily.

"Oi, moron, you okay?" He asked, masking his blooming unease.

Hinata straightened up and gave his largest smile, grinning toothily at Kageyama. "Yup, I'm fine. Just a bit dizzy. Probably ate too much." He took a step forwards, practically falling to the ground before his teammate caught him and helped him to the sink. Shouyou splashed some water on his face and slapped Kageyama's hand away, sending a silent message. He didn't need Tobio's help.

They found their way back into the gym.

One o'clock. Another match. Another loss.

Two o'clock. More sets played. Some losses, some victories. Too many penalties to count.

Three o'clock. They were back to playing Fukurōdani. The game began. Kageyama started on the back line, Akaashi was serving. His toss smashed squarely into the net. It was Kageyama's turn to serve.

He threw up the ball. Perfect. The blur of a ball traveled past the net and was received by their libero. Akaashi sent up a toss. A wing spiker and their ace ran up, preparing to spike. Kageyama could see it was going to the owlish team captain. Daichi, Hinata, and Tanaka prepared to block, running to Bokuto.

"Ready, and jump!" Daichi called out, his voice distant. Bokuto switched his spike at the last moment, targeting the tips of Hinata's fingers. He was going for the rebound. Time slowed. He hit the ball.

Kageyama watched, unable to do anything, his mouth open in a silent scream. The ball went straight through Hinata's arms and into his face. His head snapped back.

Kageyama was too late.

Four o'clock. Hinata's body crashed to the ground.


	5. Chapter 5

Hi all! I'm going to start updating this every Wednesday and Saturday for the time being. I hope you all have a great holiday season or winter break, and good luck on all of your finals! Please leave a review if you'd like, it really helps me keep writing.

Enjoy this chapter!

* * *

Things change. People are born, live their lives, and die. The world keeps on spinning.

Kageyama knew all this.

What he didn't know was how his life could change so quickly. In a matter of seconds, everything he knew changed. His world turned upside down.

The room started spinning. Kageyama's mind went blank.

Hinata's body crashed to the ground.

Someone was shaking him, yelling his name.

Hinata's body crashed to the ground.

His breathing sped up. Too fast. His heartbeat was too rapid. Everything was slipping away from him.

Hinata's body crashed to the ground.

Kageyama's world went black.

His eyes shot open, dazed. Tobio was confused and disoriented. Where was he?

Gentle bumps on a road. The highway. He looked over. Ukai was driving, intensely focused on the task at hand.

"Where are we?" He rasped, confused.

"Hinata was hit in the head by a ball, he collapsed and then you fainted. We're going to the hospital." Ukai explained and cocked a head towards the back of the car. Suga sat in the back, Hinata's head in his lap. The boy was still passed out. Daichi sat next to him, his hands running through his own hair.

Hinata's body crashed to the ground.

Kageyama's breathing sped up again. He was hyperventilating. His vision swam.

"As long as I'm here, you're invincible." The words he had said to Hinata all that time ago floated in his head.

What good was he if he couldn't even live up to the promise he made?

Wet. His cheek was wet. Was he… crying? His breathing was too fast, his heart was pounding.

"Kageyama, breathe," Ukai repeated, grabbing Tobio's arm and grounding him. His coach's grasp on him tethered him down and kept him from drifting away. "Just breathe."

But he couldn't. Over and over he was tormented with the same vision, the nightmare of Hinata falling to the ground. A bird without its wings.

Hinata's body crashed to the ground. A dull thud. No one moved. No one dared to breathe.

At four o'clock that day, Kageyama's world had stopped spinning.

The hospital. An all-too-bright shade of white, blinding. A gentle hand at his back, guiding him through the revolving doors. Suga.

An orange fluff of hair cradled in his captain's arms. Hinata.

Tears dried on his face. His eyes were red and puffy. He didn't care.

"We need some help over here!" He heard a distant yell. Ukai. Everything was happening in a blur around him. Was it even real? Maybe this was some sort of twisted nightmare.

A stretcher. Some nurses. Hinata was wheeled away. Someone embraced him. The smell of volleyballs and team jerseys surrounded him. He put his arms up as if to push away the intruder, the person violating his personal space. But he was warm. Maybe if he stayed there it would all go away. Maybe they would all be safe.

The material of the intruder's jersey was clenched in his fist. Soothing hands rubbed his hands in circles. It had been years since he had last been held like this. His fluttering heartbeat began to slow.

"That's it, Kageyama, breathe. It's going to be okay," the intruder murmured. It was Daichi.

He was pulled away and sat down on a bench. A doctor in a white coat flashed a light into his eyes. It was all too bright. The coat, the light. He was asked to make a fist. To touch all of his fingers to his palm. Follow the light with his eyes. Shake his head.

Why were they examining him? Hinata was the one they should be worrying about.

"He's fine," a nasally voice stated simply. "Other than some mental… weakness and anxiety perhaps, which could account for his fainting." And just like that, he was dismissed.

A mixture of anger and shock flared in the tall, raven-haired teen. Weak? Was he weak?

' _An eight-year old stood over a dead crow. The bird had crashed into one of the many windows of the Kageyama household. Just like that, it was gone. There was no light in its eyes, no fight. It was gone. Tears threatened to spill over the ridge of the child's eyes. His mother came rushing out when she saw the tears. "What is it?" She asked, but saw the lifeless bird and any speck of concern she had held turned to fury. "You're such a weak boy, Tobio. What have I been telling you all these years? Things change. People are born, live their lives, and die. The world keeps on spinning," she ranted. He dried his tears. "Yes, Okaasan. Gomen."'_

The hospital was filled with misery. With people crying over lost loved ones, and celebrating new lives being brought into the world. Were they weak too?

The doctor left. Kageyama couldn't tell whether time was flying past too quickly or crawling by too slowly. His team captain sat facing him. Daichi's leg bounced. Nervous. Suga bit his nails. Anxious. Ukai clasped his hands and bowed his head, uttering a silent prayer. Hopeful.

And there was Kageyama. Unforgiving. To himself, and to Hinata. To himself for failing to keep his promises. For failing to protect his teammate. To Hinata for being such an idiot.

His mouth was dry. Suga volunteered to get him a milk box from the vending machine outside. The others graciously pretended they didn't see the tears in his eyes as he half-ran away.

The doctor appeared once more. He held a clipboard and was now scribbling lazily, writing out notes. He looked up with hooded eyes and focused his gaze on Ukai.

"I assume you're the party responsible for this patient?" He asked.

"Yes, I am his coach. I've notified his parents and they're on their way now." Ukai ran a stressed hand through his hair and sighed. The doctor gave an uninterested grunt and continued writing.

"Well in that case, we're going to hold off performing tests until they arrive. The patient's body is responsive, so there is no imminent danger. We see cases like this everyday. A simple concussion, most likely. I'll have my nurses start fluids and report back to me when the patient wakes up so we can discharge him." The doctor sleazily stalked off, coughing into his sleeve as he left.

Daichi clenched his fists and glowered with anger and indignation.

"They're treating him like he's not even human, like he's a sum of money or something. That's all they care about," he growled. Kageyama couldn't remember the last time he had seen his captain so upset.

Suga appeared, walking down the hallway as lightly as an angel. He came bearing gifts; bottles of water and a box of milk for Tobio.

"Daichi," he sighed. "There's no sense in getting mad. Anger won't help Hinata."

Just as he was about to respond, a yell sounded in the hospital lobby and resonated throughout the halls. There was Tanaka, running full speed at the four, the rest of the volleyball club behind him.

Ryu hadn't even been in the hospital for a minute and yet he was already going to get thrown out.

"Is Hinata okay? How is he? Can we see him?" Noya asked in a flurry of questions, launching himself at Ukai and grabbing his arm.

"Ah, we can't see him yet. His parents are on their way." Ukai shook Noya off of him. Murmurs of disappointment went through the unusually solemn team.

As if summoned by their words, a nurse appeared in the hallway.

"You can see him if you'd like. He's not awake yet. One at a time, and keep the lights off and the sound down." She exited, closing the door behind her.

Kageyama stiffened. What if Hinata were to wake up? What would he say? He would never forgive him for the promises he broke. He should have noticed that the orange-haired spiker wasn't feeling himself. He should have made him sit out.

"Kageyama, relax. He's going to be fine," Ukai stated, clapping a hand on his shoulder. As much as he wished he could, Kageyama found himself unable to believe those five words.

The team went in one by one. Even Tsukishima, the black sheep of the bunch, went in for a few minutes.

When it was his turn, Kageyama wished the world had stopped turning. He wished that he could freeze time, or even turn back. Who knows what he would see when he opened that door.

Reluctantly, he turned the knob of the door and stepped in, eyes closed. He didn't want to open them, didn't want to see what fate Hinata had fallen victim to.

He was scared. Terrified, even. Terrified that he would open his eyes and see the spiker bloody, bruised, or even dead.

Lifeless like that crow that had been in his yard all those years ago.

The beep of a monitor. Stubborn, steady. Unwavering.

He opened his eyes.

Through the dim light finding its way through the curtains he could identify Hinata's sleeping form. The small boy was too still. The gentle inhale and exhale pattern of his breath calmed Tobio. Hinata was here. He was alive.

The bedspread was wrinkled from so many people sitting on it. Kageyama straightened it, pulling it over the lithe figure that was Shouyou. He pulled up a chair to the bed and sat there, listening to the steady beeps and breaths that filled the room.

Beep. Inhale, exhale. "I'm sorry."

Beep. Inhale, exhale. "I'm sorry I couldn't stop this."

Beep. Inhale, exhale. "I'm sorry I couldn't save you. I'm sorry I broke my promises. I'm sorry…" Kageyama's voice began to crack.

Beep. Inhale, exhale.

Beep. Inhale, exhale. "'As long as I'm here, you're invincible.' I made that promise, and I intend to keep it."

Kageyama would stay forever if he could.

Ukai checked his wrist. Kageyama had been in there for a few minutes now, longer than the other members. He sighed and got up, walking outside. The sky was dark today, darker than the storm the days prior. The store-owner pulled out a cigarette, lighting it and putting it between his teeth. He needed one to get rid of some of the stress on his back.

The tears on the dark-haired setter's eyes were certainly unexpected. He sighed, letting out a puff of smoke. Hyperventilating, passing out, it was so unlike the stoic teen that it almost made the entire day seem like a dream.

But who could blame him? The way Hinata had crumpled had freaked him out too. Watching the life get kicked out of the animated spiker was something he never wished to see. The team had been getting so strong, both in terms of their playing and their bonds together.

A flash in the corner of his eye caught his eye. A flash of orange. In the midst of the busy parking lot, a couple rushed towards the hospital.

Ukai put out his cigarette and ran towards them.

"Excuse me! Are you the parents of Hinata Shouyou?' He yelled out. They had to be.

The woman was a mirror image of him- well, her hair was at least. Although looks of concern marred their faces, the same laugh lines that began to appear on Hinata's face were engraved into the man's. In the woman's arm was a young girl, practically a mirror image of Shouyou. "I'm his coach. Come with me."

Ukai led them to Hinata's room, silently sliding open the door and ushering the anxious parents through. He could see now why Kageyama had taken so long. The teen had fallen asleep in his chair, peacefully leaning over the bed, his face centimeters away from Hinata's. The coach went over and gently tapped the boy, who woke up with a gasp.

Kageyama felt as if he had been submerged in ice. He had fallen asleep on Hinata's bed. His face began to heat up when he noticed the others in the room. Ukai was there, along with two unnamed faces. Tobio assumed that they were Hinata's parents.

The setter awkwardly bowed and excused himself softly from the room, stepping out into the harsh light of the hallway.

Karasuno's volleyball club was joined by several other scattered members from other teams. They all raised tired, questioning eyes at him, each asking the same silent question.

"Nothing's changed," he informed them, taking a seat by Yachi. The blonde was shaking, and it had been evident that she had been crying earlier. Kiyoko sat next to her, murmuring soft words into her ears. Telling her that it was going to be okay. That Hinata was going to be fine.

Kageyama almost wished he could believe those sweet, sweet lies.

A chirpy, too-cheerful nurse informed the grim teens that visiting hours were over, and only direct family would be allowed to remain with Hinata. Ukai stood up and turned around to the group, addressing them all at once.

"We're going to go back to the hotel now, there's nothing more we can do but pray. His parents can take care of him now. I appreciate you all coming out here, and I'm sure Hinata will too. I'm not sure if we'll practice tomorrow. I know our number ten would want us to, but if I'm completely honest, I don't think I have the energy or will to go through a practice with him in this state." Ukai sighed, rubbing his temples. This one day would give him enough grey hairs to last a lifetime.

Takeda brought the bus around and the volleyball players humorlessly boarded the vehicle, taking their usual seat.

Kageyama went to sit down. One of the blankets Suga had passed out, the one Hinata had used was still sprawled out on the faded-blue seats. His face nearly went white, as if he had seen a ghost. Tobio took the seat across the aisle from where the pair had previously sat and stared blankly ahead through the entire ride. He couldn't stomach sitting there right now.

They arrived at the hotel. Before he could think twice, Kageyama grabbed the blanket and shoved it into his gym bag and followed the others inside into the warm light of the lobby. The others dispersed to go to their own floors and rooms until only Suga and Kageyama remained, the latter of the two already uncomfortable by the unavoidable interaction.

"Kageyama," Suga reached out for one of Tobio's shoulders, pulling back when he noticed the way the other setter flinched away from his touch.

"I'm in room 228 if you need anything," he sighed. "You don't have to be afraid to ask for help. Ever. It doesn't make you weak. If anything, I think it makes you stronger."

Kageyama's head shot up, his surprised eyes meeting Suga's kind ones. Something suddenly made him want to trust the older teen. He repressed the urge to smash that feeling down. It made him feel warm in a way he hadn't felt in what seemed like forever.

"Yeah," he mumbled and hoisted his bag over his shoulder, taking the elevator to his floor. His room was empty, cold. He flipped on the lights. On the shelf stood a tiger, glaring at him from the shadows. A smile tugged at his lips. In a way, it did remind him of himself.

Kageyama dragged the blanket and the tiger onto Hinata's unmade bed, deciding that he would bring them to the hospital the next day. Tobio resisted the pressing urge to make Hinata's bed. It felt wrong, like if he made the bed no trace of Hinata would be left. His clothes, scattered around the room, his shoes- all of Shouyou's things were here, untouched. They would be best left that way.

He collapsed onto his bed and accepted the trance-like clutch of his nightmares, drifting off into a fitful sleep.

Kageyama stood in a dark room. The gym. He could smell the net, the stale air. A fire lit in the room. He remembered the nightmare Hinata had had a few days ago.

Sugawara was on the ground, looking up, his mouth whispering unrecognizable words. All around the room, the forms of the Karasuno Volleyball Team littered the floor. Asahi. Daichi. Noya. Tsukishima.

Hinata stood in the middle of the room. His eyes blank. His face expressionless. Something wasn't right. He was looking down. A limp figure. A number nine. His number.

"It's all your fault." A voice. Hinata's. His head was cocked as if he were asking a question. Chills radiated through Kageyama's body.

"What do you mean, moron?" He spluttered, his voice shaking more than he would like it to.

"It's all your fault." The shadow that was Hinata collapsed.

Kageyama ran forwards, trying to catch him. No matter how hard he pushed his legs, he couldn't seem to get any closer to the falling teen.

Shouyou's head smashed against the ground. A bone-splitting crack, a boom of thunder. Hinata's eyes glazed over. Lifeless. Gone.

It was all his fault.

Kageyama's eyes burst open. He curled into a ball. He was panicking. He needed to stop. He had to stop. His heart raced. His fault. Hinata's body crashed to the ground. A crack. His fault.

He couldn't think. His mind was shutting down. ' _Suga.'_ Was the only thought that escaped the mess of his mind.

Tobio stumbled into the hallway. 228. He panted as he fumbled for the elevator buttons.

Two-twenty-eight. Two-twenty-eight. The thought became a mantra. The room, a brass plate engraved with the number. He knocked. Kageyama collapsed by the door, his vision swimming. His fault. His fault.

A gentle voice. The creek of a door. Someone was helping him up, helping him into the room. He was put down on a bed. His ears rang. He squeezed his eyes closed in an attempt to prevent the tears which were threatening to fall.

"Breathe, Kageyama."

"Breathe. With me. In, out. In, out," Suga calmly murmured.

"What's going on?" He heard a tired, gravelly voice ask. "Nevermind, I'm going to go get some water." Daichi. His captain left the room, leaving Suga and Kageyama alone.

"My first volleyball game, I was a first year, just like you. Well, not just like you. I was never as good as you are now," Suga laughed breathlessly. The jingling sound helped clear Tobio's mind.

"I went to throw a toss to Asahi, but I threw it too close to the net." That's right, Asahi liked his tosses high and away from the net. Kageyama could remember that. He imagined passing to the ace. His breathing slowed.

"Anyways, Asahi went for it anyways but somehow managed to get himself caught in the net. Don't ask me how it happened, and certainly don't tell him I told you. But he fell, of course, and ended up bringing the net down with him. He was mortified, even though it really was my fault all along," laughed Sugawara. He sat down next to Kageyama, who found himself nearly smiling at the image of Asahi, as large as he was, dragging down a net with him.

"So, are you going to tell me why you're down here?" The older boy asked, gently prodding for an answer.

"It… It was a dream," Tobio bit his lip. "I don't want to talk about it yet."

"That's fine, that's fine. The fact that you even had the courage to come down here means that you're getting better. Now, let's get you back to your room."

Kageyama let Suga lead him to the door, turning around before he left. He remembered what Hinata had said to him when talking about his nightmare.

"Sugawara?" Kageyama paused in his tracks.

"Yeah?" Suga asked, wary.

"Thank you."


	6. Chapter 6

Hi guys! I hope that you all are enjoying the Holidays. I should be back tomorrow with another update. Please leave a review if you guys would like, and enjoy the story!

* * *

Kageyama woke up with a skull-splitting headache. It felt as if an entire orchestra was running around his brain, clashing symbols and banging drums. He rolled over and groaned into his pillow. A small stream of light poked through the curtains, the ray of sunshine nearly blinding him. Tobio got up to pull the blinds closed, but paused in his tracks at the sight of the empty bed next to his. That's right. Hinata wasn't here.

The memories of the previous days flowed back into his mind as if a floodgate had been opened. The tiger he had bought Hinata was still on his bed. Kageyama grabbed it and shoved it into his gym bag, deciding to bring it to the hospital.

He felt his stomach twist into a knot, but was too tired to start panicking once again. He was tired of it all, of breaking down, of seeing Hinata's limp figure in his mind. He had to clear his head.

There was only one thing that could do that for him- practice.

He left his room to head for the hotel lobby where he met with the others from his team. Each and every one of them had hollow, stress-filled faces stricken with fatigue. Tobio was sure he didn't look much better.

The dark-haired setter found himself almost nodding off as Takeda explained their plan for the day- they would practice, but anyone who wished to could go visit Hinata at the hospital.

The hospital. Kageyama couldn't go back there. The sickly smell of antiseptic nauseated him. He couldn't stomach the sight of Hinata lying on a cot, various tubes branching out from him like twigs on a tree.

Suddenly, he realized that everyone had been staring at him expectantly, waiting for an answer.

"Oh, I'm going to practice," he said, biting the inside of his cheek hard enough that he drew blood. The metallic taste filled his mouth. The pain distracted him from the murmurs that whisked through the group, all puzzling over why Tobio wouldn't want to see the other half of his duo. Let them wonder, he thought.

He drove with Ukai to the gym, accompanied by Tsukki and Asahi. They arrived to a silent gym. Everyone stopped and ogled at them. The attention made him uncomfortable. He shifted the bag on his shoulder, staring at the ground. He tried his best to ignore the stares sent in the direction of his willowy frame, the sense of his every movement being watched.

They warmed up. Serves. Kageyama tossed to Asahi. Tsukki blocked. A pair of managers from an unknown team walked past, gossiping to one another.

"Well, he was so small it was no wonder he got hurt."

"Yeah but still, why are some of his teammates still here? They must not care about him at all, huh?"

"Maybe he wasn't that important to the team. It looked like he was at a much lower skill level than the others and…"

At that point, Tobio stopped listening. His eardrums echoed the sound of his heart beating at an ever increasing volume. Blood rushed into his head. He prepared to set to Asahi. He had thought the same thing as those managers when he first saw Hinata at that tournament in middle school. Shouyou had been nothing but a waste of time to him, the king. Anger sounded throughout his body, setting off alarms in his mind. Calm down.

The ball shot off his hands, flying past Asahi and bouncing on the ground.

"Sumimasen. I'll do better next time," Kageyama apologized through gritted teeth.

Hours went by. The intensive practice did little to Tobio but make him work even harder. When he played, the panicked thoughts threatening to take root in his mind were held at bay. He failed to notice the declining energy of his teammates, however, as they panted and pushed themselves to their limits to keep up with the first year.

"Kageyama," Asahi panted. "That's enough. Let's take a break." His breathing was ragged and unsteady as he lurched forwards and fell dramatically onto his knees.

"No!" The setter practically yelled, grabbing another ball. "I can't."

"Normally I'm not one to agree with people… but I agree with Asahi. This is getting pretty lame," coughed Tsukki, all 188 centimeters of him tumbling to the ground. It was only then that Kageyama noticed the empty gym, the absence of yells and thumps of balls. He grabbed a towel and stalked out of the gym, heading out towards the doors.

His headache was gone, but had now been replaced with a feeling of dizziness. He had likely over-exerted himself. Kageyama sighed and began cooling down, stretching alone in a hallway. Over the distant noise of the building's furnace he heard two distinct voices; the soft baritone of Asahi and the biting tone of Tsukki's.

"Suga told me he's been having anxiety attacks or something of the sort," he heard Asahi mumble. He froze. They were talking about him.

"All I'm asking for you is to be there for him, and for the rest of the team and Hinata when he wakes up. Suga has his own issues, too. He and Ennoshita can't be the only ones holding up this pillar of a team. Each one of us can only do so much, and we won't be here for longer."

"I know." His ears picked up Tsukki's sigh. "It's not my problem that he's such a pompous king sometimes, but that doesn't mean that I wish the worst on him."

Kageyama huffed and reached out farther, grasping his toes with his slender fingers and holding the stretch. The fact that Suga told the others about him made him lose the little trust he felt he had built up. How would the others ever respect him now? They'd probably mark him off as damaged property and throw him away, just like his old team.

The teen got up and snatched his bag off of the ground, marching out into the freezing December air. He laughed bitterly to himself. For his birthday, the world had given him an injured teammate and brought him into a constant state of panic. This was the worst it could get, right?

Kageyama didn't know just how wrong he was.

Takeda picked up the boys and drove them to the hospital. Tobio hesitated as he walked through the doors, scared of what secrets he might reveal inside. They were greeted by their teammates, who were just as downcast as they were the day before.

That meant there was no change. Noya barred his teeth and blinked away heavy tears that emerged in the corners of his eyes.

"They took him for a test, but apparently he was lower on the waiting list because his condition 'wasn't severe enough'." He growled, clenching his fists. The others looked blankly ahead, drained of all emotion. Only Suga was able to shoot a quick smile at the three. He patted the bench next to him.

"Kageyama, come, sit down." He smiled sweetly, as if he hadn't shattered Tobio's hopes of even having anyone to confide in.

"I'm fine standing, thanks." What was normally an expression of gratitude came out as an attack, a biting remark. Hurt flashed in Suga's eyes for a moment, but by the time he blinked Kageyama was sure he had imagined it. The grey-haired setter simply nodded in acknowledgement and began humming a whimsical-sounding tune. Daichi and Asahi exchanged knowing glances.

"Suga, how about you come with me and get some water for the others? I'm sure you're all thirsty by now," suggested Daichi, rising to his feet and motioning for the other teen to follow him. Kageyama looked down as Sugawara passed him, surprised to see the other boy's nails digging into his own palms. He used to do that as a child in an attempt to distract himself from something, including pain.

Guilt seared inside of him, but he instantly repressed the feeling and turned to Ukai.

"Can… Can I see him?" He asked, motioning to the door.

His coach gave a hesitant smile, nodding. "Hinata's parents went to get lunch just now, they'll be back soon."

The door slid open with ease. Kageyama shut it behind him, stepping into the stale air of the dimly-lit room. There were flowers and a pile of stuffed animals that began to collect in the corner of his room, gifts from various volleyball players from the training camp.

The mattress creaked as he sat down on it, his back to the injured boy. The doctor had chosen to give him until the end of the day to wake up before they went through with more testing. This was "normal", apparently. Nothing about the situation was "normal". Hinata himself was not a "normal" volleyball player. He gritted his teeth, squashing the anger that was bubbling up inside of him.

"That nightmare you had a few days ago. You said you were having it for days on end," Kageyama began, his voice barely above a whisper. "How did you do it? How could you still come to practice smiling?" He paused, looking at the peaceful teen with a mixture of confusion and amazement.

"You're better than me, Hinata. You're stronger." He ran a hand through his hair, turning back around and staring at the ceiling, trying to keep himself from remembering the memories of his nightmares and of the flightless Shouyou.

The other end of the bed shifted. He froze. Had he imagined it? Too scared to turn around, he went silent. Kageyama stopped breathing, waiting in suspense.

The covers moved. There it was. He turned around, surprised to see Hinata moving ever so slightly.

Heavy lids opened, golden eyes meeting dark ones.

"Kage...yama," Hinata Shouyou croaked, his face full of pain. His eyes rolled back, pools of brown flecked with gold staring into the back of his skull. Kageyama sprung off of the bed.

Tobio watched, helpless as the agile shape of Hinata began to writhe in the darkness, spastically quaking. It was a terrifying display. His legs refused to move, his body refused to scream. He could hear his heart pounding in his ears.

He forced his heavy limbs to run to the doorway. One step at a time. Each footfall fell as heavily as his heart. He threw open the door, blinded by the bright light of the immaculate hallway.

"Hinata," he screamed.

"Hinata's having a seizure!"


	7. Chapter 7

Panic was not the right word to describe what Kageyama was feeling. He was past that, in a state of hysteria so shaken that he was calm. It was almost like the feeling of stepping into water so hot it was cold.

He heard no sound. There were no voices, the noises of Hinata's shaking were gone. For a moment, he was removed from reality. It was peaceful, it was pure bliss, it was surreal. A steady, high-pitched ring sounded in his ears. His vision went blurry. Where was he?

Oh, right. The hospital.

His body was moved. Someone had bumped into him. A nurse running past. A calloused hand pulled him from out of the doorway and grasped him by the shoulder, shaking him. He wanted to stay in the state he was in just a bit longer, he wanted to believe that everything would be okay for just a second more.

"Kageyama!" A voice cried, shattering the mirage of his tranquil mind. Fear hit him like a train. Constant beeps sounded in the distance at an alarmingly fast pace. Nurses flowed in and out of the door, shouting the names of medicines that Tobio did not quite catch.

Hinata was wheeled out of the room and down the hall, his scrawny body shaking.

He felt pure fear clawing at his conscious, threatening to force its way inside. He needed to get out of here. Out. It was all he wanted. All he could think of. He wanted this nightmare to be over, for Hinata to be okay, for things to go back to the way they were. He wanted these constant attacks of anxiety and panic to stop. He wanted everything to be normal again.

Tobio's eyes flitted around the room, searching frantically for a place to escape. The doors down the hallway, leading to the parking lot. In an instant, his fight or flight response kicked in. He smacked the hand off of his shoulder and bolted down the hallway, knocking over carts of medical equipment that were in his way.

"Kageyama! Stop him!" He heard someone cry. He had to get out. He had to leave. The doors were right in front of him. He was just a hair's width away from his freedom.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw long, orange locks floating past. Hinata's mother. His parents were panicked, terrorized by the sight of their beloved son thrashing about as if a spirit had overtaken him.

He kept running, pushing through the doors and crashing straight into the arms of his team captain. Tobio beat his fists against the stocky third year's chest, but it was of little use. His willowy figure was no match for Daichi's strong-built one.

He was panicking. He couldn't think of anything other than the violation of his personal space, the intruder denying him his freedom.

"Let me go!" Kageyama screamed, his voice a higher pitch than usual. "Let me go, let me go!" The teen repeatedly screamed and clawed at his older teammate until his throat went hoarse and he exhausted all of his energy, slowly ceasing his attack. This was so unlike his usual demeanor, it shocked both the third year and Kageyama himself.

"Let me go," he whispered, lightly sobbing into Daichi's chest for the second time in only two days, pounding his fists gently on him. Hinata could die. Hinata could leave him. What would he be worth then? Without their freak quicks, what value would he hold to the team? They would probably cast him aside just like his middle school team had.

"I'm not going to leave you," rumbled Daichi, holding the terrified teen closer to him. He slowly rubbed soothing circles into the setter's back until he felt Kageyama push away. The team captain watched as Tobio dried his eyes and stared at the ground, his stoic expression taking control of his face once more.

"He was awake. He said my name," Kageyama drew in a shuddering breath. The shock on Daichi's face was apparent.

"Are you okay coming with me and telling this to the doctors? I think it would help them understand Hinata's condition." Daichi asked, already sure of what Kageyama would say.

"If it helps Hinata."

The two filed back into the hospital. Ukai made eye contact with Daichi, the two having an unspoken conversation. Kageyama sat down on a bench, waiting for a medical professional to come over so he could describe the horror he had witnessed.

Hinata was warm. He opened his eyes and found himself in front of a bright light, a welcoming aura. He reached out, puzzling over how the light shined upon his hand and reflected in his eyes. He felt safe here. The light was beckoning him forwards, almost luring him in.

"Hinata." A voice called out. Maybe if he ignored it, he could be warm a little longer.

"Hinata!" The voice yelled, more intensely this time. He turned around.

The tall form of Kageyama Tobio stood a ways away from him. From this distance he couldn't quite tell, but… was he crying?

Shouyou walked forwards, approaching the setter. The tears which streaked down the other teen's face were definitely there.

"Why are you crying, idiot?" He asked, standing in front of his teammate.

"You tell me, moron." Kageyama drew in a shuddery breath and grabbed Hinata's arm, gripping it tightly. "You don't get to leave the team."

"You don't get to leave me."

"Did I get hurt?" He asked, receiving only a grunt in response. That alone was confirmation enough. Hinata's eyes went wide with fear.

"Am I going to be okay?" The ginger asked, now starting to shake. He wrapped his arms around the neck of his setter in an attempt to stabilize himself.

"We don't know." Was the reply.

"Am I going to die?" His voice went down to a terrified whisper. He had so much left to do, so many things he hadn't said or done.

"That's up to you." And with that, the apparition that took the form of Kageyama vanished, leaving Hinata locked alone in his own mind. The bright light blinded him now, but it no longer felt pleasant. It was sinister, overpowering.

He had to live. He couldn't afford to die.

Ukai moved his team from the hallway outside of Hinata's room to the waiting room to give Hinata's mother and father space. It was the least he could do for the terrified and stressed parents. The spiker had been wheeled into the surgical room and they had yet to receive an update on his status. The more he thought about it the more he felt he needed a cigarette. Suga, an angel like always, volunteered to watch their young daughter, setting her down on the floor of the waiting room and rolling a ball back-and-forth with her. The orange-haired child's giggle rose above the team's gloom, lightening the mood a little bit.

"So what's your name?" Suga asked, rolling the ball towards Hinata's sister.

"I'm Natsu! I'm going to play volleyball just like niisan!" She bubbled, smacking the ball back towards Karasuno's grey-haired setter with her pudgy hands.

"Really? Your brother is a great player. Think you can beat him?" Sugawara smiled warmly at the younger child.

"Yeah!" Laughed Natsu, continuing the pattern of returning the ball to Suga. Eventually she grew bored of this game, her attention span reflecting that of her older brother's. Natsu chose this moment to climb onto Kageyama's lap and grab the corners of his mouth, pushing them up.

"Smile!" She demanded. Tobio was just about to remove the girl from him when he felt Daichi glare at him, the heat of his stare making him freeze. He half-heartedly attempted a smile, too tired to fake a realistic one.

"Scary!" Natsu exclaimed, plopping herself down onto Kageyama and almost instantly falling asleep, grabbing ahold of his thumb with her tiny fists. He could see where she got her ability to fall asleep so fast from, remembering how easily Hinata had passed out on the bus.

A surgeon's assistant came into the waiting room, her scrub cap still on.

"He's got a lot of internalized bleeding in his brain which created too much pressure and caused the seizure, so we're removing that and fixing the bleed right now. All's going well, and the surgery should be over in another two hours or so," she informed them before heading back and disappearing down a hallway.

With Natsu sleeping on his lap, Kageyama took to watching the TV on the wall, ignoring his worries that Hinata might not make it through the surgery. The hospital was warm, and the weight of the napping child and his lack of decent sleep did nothing to aid his oncoming drowsiness. Slowly, he drifted off.

He awoke to the giggles of his teammates, who were clustered around him and the passed out child. They all had their phones out and were snapping pictures.

"Niisan! Can I sleep on you, too?" Noya asked teasingly. It was nice to see them all laughing together for the first time in days, but Kageyama failed to see the humor in the situation. Hinata was undergoing a brain surgery at that very moment.

"All right, that's enough," Ennoshita laughed, waving away the others. The noise woke Natsu up. The nap had given her a new boost of energy, and she began tugging Kageyama down to the floor and forced him to play with her.

He felt awkward. He had no clue how to deal with young children, but assumed it would be similar to talking with Hinata.

Natsu dragged out some dolls as Kageyama repressed a groan, well aware of the cameras that were on him. His teammates were snapping photos of him as he listened to the young girl craft an elaborate story about a princess, an evil kidnapper, and a prince, making Kageyama play the kidnapper.

"You play the evil guy because you're scary!" She exclaimed, earning choking laughs from Kageyama's teammates. After a few more minutes of this torture, Tobio's ears picked up the sound of arguing coming from the lobby. He glanced over to see Hinata's parents almost yelling at the sleazy-looking doctor who had emerged from the surgical room. His stomach tightened. Had something bad happened?

"You should have done the tests sooner! Then none of this would have happened. My son had to go through surgery because of your incompetence!" Hinata's mother seemed to be the only one arguing, her hair making her look like she were on fire. Her husband stood at her side, calm and collected.

"He's doing well and he's in the recovery room now. You'll be able to see him soon. Now, if you'd excuse me, I have another patient to get to." The doctor walked off, clearly not caring about the well-being of Hinata.

Shouyou's mother ran into his father's arms, covering her face with her hands and crying into his shoulder. Kageyama picked up Natsu and led her to a place where she wouldn't be able to witness her mother crying, wanting to spare the child the pain he knew too well.

His parents were never the loving type, not to him or to one another. He remembered the vivid image of his mother throwing herself onto her bed, sobbing into her pillows, thinking that her son couldn't hear. From then on, she had always told him to be stronger. Told him crying was a sign of weakness and that the only way to be strong was to be independent.

After being accepted onto Karasuno's volleyball team, he was beginning to think the opposite was true. He looked at the child playing in front of him, blissfully oblivious to the struggles of those around her.

Hinata was out of surgery. He was going to be okay, right?

By the time Shouyou was out of the recovery room, the sun had begun to bask in swaths of orange and a flaming red, indicating the day was coming to a close. Kageyama stared at the cars passing by on the highway, watching them flash down the lanes.

"Excuse me," a polite, yet exhausted voice sounded from a ways away. Hinata's mother stood in front of the team, arms nervously crossed in front of her. "I… thought I should let you know that he's out of surgery and seems to be doing well. He hasn't woken up yet, though." She bit her lip, fidgeting with the sleeve of her jacket. Her current demeanor made Kageyama wonder if this was the same woman he had seen fighting so fiercely earlier. She looked defeated and exhausted. It was clear she hadn't been sleeping well.

Natsu jumped up from Kageyama's side, where she had been scribbling away at a coloring book. Every so often she would point at a drawing, expecting praise from the tall teen. In a way it reminded him of Hinata after he had completed a decent serve, the way he looked at his teammates for reassurance. The young girl ran to her mother and clung to her leg.

"Thank you for letting us know," Ukai responded, rising to his feet and sending a weak smile in the direction of the woman. He addressed the various volleyball players in the room. Kenma, Kuroo, Bokuto, and several other players from opposing teams sat with Karasuno as they waited for word of their spiker.

"We're going to head back now, but I don't think there will be enough room on the bus for all of us. I can fit however many are left in my car," he informed them. Kageyama stood up.

"I don't have to go on the bus," he told Ukai. The reality was that he just didn't want to be forced to sit with someone and make conversation. He was exhausted, both mentally and physically.

"I can stay behind as well," a cheery voice volunteered. Kageyama froze. Suga had raised his hand. His growing distrust in the silver-haired teen had put him off guard. It was the first time he had truly began to confide in someone, began to place his trust in someone other than himself. Suga had ruined that small spark of hope he had built up, the hope that he would be able to find someone to put his faith in after all these years. He had never understood how Hinata was able to trust so deeply. The way he was able to place his faith in Kageyama's abilities confused him. He bit the inside of his lip. That trust might have brought Shouyou into the situation he was in now.

"I'll bring the van around." Ukai pushed a cigarette between his teeth and headed out the door, following the others. This left only Suga and Kageyama. Alone.

Tobio turned away from the other teen, scowling at the wall.

"How did you sleep after last night?" Sugawara asked, his voice sounding genuine.

"Fine," Kageyama spat out, refusing to make eye contact with the other teen.

"You know, you can trust me if something's bothering-" The other setter began, but was cut off by a flurry of words from Tobio.

" _Trust_ you? I thought I could, sure. But I guess I was stupid to think I could trust the likes of you. You went and told the rest of the team about everything, didn't you?" Every word was a lash of its own, biting deep into Sugawara like a whip.

A few uncomfortable seconds passed.

"I-" Suga began once more, about to defend himself.

"Don't. I'm not going to forgive you," Kageyama hissed. Adrenaline pumped through his body. He could feel his heart racing with the sudden surge of emotion, a wave of burning anger that flushed his mind.

The older teen began humming the same, whimsical tune from earlier that day. It was different now. Faster and at a higher pitch, becoming more and more panicked.

"I'm sorry," a whisper escaped Suga's mouth. Kageyama turned around to see him gripping the armrest of the sofa he was sitting on so tightly his knuckles turned white. He began to sway on his chair, rocking back and forth as Tobio watched.

Sugawara began to crumple before Kageyama's eyes, apologizing over and over. His breath came in short puffs. His hands went from the side of the sofa to his mouth, clasped in front of his face. He was freaking out. The younger setter didn't know what to do.

"Kageyama, call Daichi," Suga breathed.

"Why-"

"Please," his teammate begged.

Tobio fished his phone out of his bag and fumbled through his contacts until he found his captain's number, hitting the call button.

"Kageyama?" Daichi picked up almost instantly. Tobio had never called him before now.

"It's Sugawara, he's freaking out and he told me to call you. I don't know what to do," Kageyama explained.

"Listen to me. Are his hands by his face? Grab them. I know it sounds weird, but do it please," instructed Daichi. "Put me on speaker."

Tobio did as he was told. Awkwardly, he approached the panicking boy and hesitantly pulled his hands away from his face.

"Suga, breathe. You're safe, you're okay. Everything's going to be fine, you just need to breathe. In and out, remember?" The static voice of Daichi came through the phone. In the background Kageyama could hear the yells of his teammates, oblivious to the problem at hand.

"Daichi, I think I messed up," Suga panted. He was hyperventilating.

"Suga, whatever you did, it can't be as bad as the time you smashed a ball into that referee's face, right? Remember how hard we laugh about that? Our captain nearly had your head for that." Daichi chuckled. The fond memory began to help calm Suga, although he still remained tense and panicked. Kageyama remembered what Daichi had done for him earlier and shifted himself so that he was sitting next to Suga, placing a hand on his back and reluctantly rubbing circles to calm the other boy. Even though he didn't trust Suga at the moment, he knew things would only get worse if the other setter continued panicking. His other hand remained on the older teen's, letting him grip it as if it were a lifeline.

"Yeah, I remember," Suga laughed weakly. His breathing slowed, but it was clear he had become dizzy from the lack of oxygen. "I'm okay now."

"You sure? Then I'm going to go. Thanks, Kageyama."

"Yeah." Tobio sprung away from Suga and went back to his own chair, gazing curiously at the other teen. He felt awkward. Comforting others was never something that came easily to him, and comforting the usually cheerful Sugawara was an entirely different story.

"Kageyama, the others have noticed that you've been… different lately. They were all concerned. We all worry about you. I just wanted to make sure everyone could be there for you and understand what was going on. I'm sorry, maybe I shouldn't have told them."

"It's fine," Kageyama sighed. After what he had just witnessed, he didn't have the heart to stay angry with Suga.

"When I first joined this team, I was the only setter. As a first year, I was nervous. I was terrified. The entire team relied on me. So when we continued losing, I blamed myself. The thought of facing our opponents in games scared me so badly that I would always panic before matches. I really believed that I was worthless, that the team would be better off without me," Suga laughed.

"My anxiety about volleyball grew so large it started creeping into my everyday life. I couldn't function in school or at home anymore without freaking out about nothing. I could just be sitting in class and all of a sudden I would feel like I couldn't breathe, like I was being choked by the pressure of the team relying on me. I'll admit, when you came, I was relieved that I could hide behind your strength and skill as a setter."

Kageyama's eyes widened.

"Asahi and Daichi brought me through it. They helped me through my anxiety. So when I saw you, I thought I would help you the same way the others help me. I don't want you to feel alone, Kageyama. You're not alone. Your middle school days are over. No one is going to reject you, if you get what I'm saying. You have the team now, and I just want you to know that we're all behind you."

At that moment, Ukai came through the door, unknowingly interrupting the moment between the two. Kageyama shouldered his bag and headed out the door, pondering the words that had been spoken to him. From the day he had began playing on his middle school team, he had always been the king. He was always alone, left out by the others. Then he came here. Everyone was so welcoming to him, it was such a foreign feeling to be included and have others care for him. He sighed. As long as the team worked well together, he supposed, he didn't have a problem with it.

He followed his coach and teammate into the car. The gentle bumps and warm glow of streetlamps began to lull him to sleep. A certain warmth spread from his head to his toes, giving him a sensation he so rarely felt.

Trust. It was a strange thing to Kageyama.


	8. Chapter 8

Hi guys! Merry Christmas Eve and happy holidays to all of you, I'm grateful to be able to have the opportunity to put this story out there for all of you to read. Without further adieu, enjoy this chapter and I'll be back tomorrow for more! (Consider it my Christmas gift to you) :)

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Kageyama opened his eyes, surprised to find that he had slept through the night without any disruptions. A knock sounded on the door. He walked over to the door and glanced through the peephole, surprised to see the gruff face of his coach staring back at him.

"Oi, I don't have all day," the store-owner huffed. Kageyama pulled the door open and offered a hasty apology which Ukai waved aside.

"Today was supposed to be our last day at this training camp, but Nekoma offered to host us for a few nights more while Hinata is still in the hospital. If you want to stay, you have to get permission from your parents first," he sighed. Taking this many days off of work was a sure way to get him in trouble with his family.

Kageyama murmured in acknowledgement and shut the door, making his way back over to his bed. A weight settled in his stomach. He always hated asking his parents for anything.

Tobio sighed and picked up his phone, composing a formal and stiff text message to his mother explaining the situation at hand. He picked up a volleyball and mindlessly passed it to himself while he waited for a response.

His phone buzzed. Kageyama let the ball bounce, turning and reading the message on the illuminated screen.

"Tobio, you're free to stay in Tokyo for as long as your team will. Please let us know if you need anything else." Was his mom's response. He let out a breath of relief. He wasn't sure what he would do if he had to go back home.

The tiger Hinata had insisted on buying was still on the smaller boy's unkempt bed. Kageyama realized he had forgotten to bring it to the hospital earlier and decided to grab it on his way out. Time passed as he made his way down to the lobby and was joined by several of his teammates who were discussing the possibility of the team staying a few days longer.

Ukai came over, smiling for the first time in what seemed like days. His crooked grin brought back some of the team's lost energy.

"It looks like everyone can stay for a little while longer. The hotel let us book our rooms for the next four days," he told them. The team erupted in cheers but were quickly hushed by the hotel staff and by Daichi who smacked Tanaka on the back.

They boarded their bus, heading over to the now-familiar setting that was the hospital. The chatter of his teammates, like usual, became background noise. The familiar sounds were soothing to him as he stared out the window, wondering whether or not Hinata would be awake by now.

"Hey, Tsukki, what's that?" He heard Yamaguchi ask from the front of the vehicle.

"Oh, what? This?" Kageyama craned his neck to see what they were talking about. Tsukishima was holding up a toy lizard of some sort, as far as Tobio could tell.

"This is a Coelophysis," he told them, pushing his glasses farther up the bridge of his nose.

"Are you bringing that to Hinata?" Takeda asked warmly.

Tsukishima nodded, bringing the figure closer to his face.

"This particular dinosaur was hollow-boned and very light. It was the kind of dinosaur that would keep pushing on until it got whatever meal it wanted. It reminded me of Hinata, I guess," Kei paused. "Even if that straightforward attitude is annoying."

Yamaguchi laughed to himself, earning a frown from the blond.

"Gomen, Tsukki, it's just that I thought I'd never see the day when you'd be able to care for Hinata at all. I mean, you always used to mock him."

"Tch," the middle blocker glared at the ground, gritting his teeth. He was unwilling to admit that he wanted their teammate to get better already. The idiot had gone and gotten himself hurt over a stupid volleyball and a stupid game. He could never understand why Hinata fought so hard for a club activity, but seeing the freak quick the duo had come up with made him want to improve in a way. He was the only one on the team without some sort of special ability, other than his height.

"Tsukishima, that's nice of you," Suga piped up, patting him on the back and giving him his typical bright smile. The third year turned to Daichi, his expression suddenly switching to an unimpressed glare.

"You're the only person who hasn't brought Hinata anything, Daichi," he accused the team captain, crossing his arms and huffing impatiently. The other club members laughed, knowing full well that Suga was the only person who could speak to the other third year like that.

"It's not just me, Asahi hasn't brought anything either," Daichi laughed. Asahi reddened under the sudden attention that was granted to him.

"Ah, well, you see… I haven't found anything that feels right yet," Asahi stuttered. Noya laughed and reached over his seat to clap the ace on the back, yelling something that Kageyama didn't quite catch.

He felt a bit like an observer in this situation, an outsider. Tobio sat back and watched his teammates interact with one another, laughing and pushing at each other like they were one large family. He clenched his hands. He wanted to be a part of that.

He remembered what Ennoshita had told him at their match with Seijoh, when he had been benched. It had taken him a while to realize it, but a setter's connections with the team were the most important. The bonds of trust built between a setter and a spiker had to be inseparable. The spiker had to trust the setter to send the ball his way, and the setter had to trust that the spiker would hit it.

He wasn't sure what to call the bond between him and Hinata. Were they friends? Were they partners?

The bus came to a halt. The members of Karasuno's volleyball team slowly made their way into the hospital, heading down the familiar halls to Hinata's room and taking seats on benches. Hinata's father came out to greet them, explaining his son's current condition before heading back into the dark room. He paused before the dark-haired setter, turning to him.

"You must be Kageyama Tobio, if I'm correct?" He asked, smiling warmly at the teen. He had the same dimples and eye creases as Hinata, although his demeanor was much, much calmer.

"Yes, it's a pleasure to meet you," Tobio bowed.

"Wow, so polite," he laughed. "Shouyou has spoken so highly of you, you two must be great friends. Why don't you come over some time?" He offered. Kageyama froze, unsure of what to say. He had never really had any friends when he came to think of it, and had never been invited to someone's house before.

"Ah, sure," he hesitated in his response. Hinata's father disappeared back into the hospital room. Kageyama frowned, now starting wondering exactly what Hinata had said about him.

"Kageyama, you look confused," Noya commented, leaning back against the wall behind him.

Tobio looked off to the side, embarrassed. "It's just that I've… never actually been invited to someone else's house."

"Or really had someone to consider a friend," he added, biting the inside of his cheek.

"Antisocial, how lame," snorted Tsukishima, sporting a condescending smirk on his face.

"I'm not antisocial," Kageyama bit back. "I've just been focused on volleyball."

"Tsukishima, you're one to talk about being introverted." Tanaka pointed his finger accusingly at the middle blocker, glaring at him with a nasty sneer. They were all silenced with a quick look from Daichi.

"I was actually quite surprised when I learned that you and Hinata had basically just met this year," Ukai spoke up. "I thought that you guys were childhood friends or something because of how well you both worked together."

Kageyama remembered the first time he had seen the smaller teen. He had written him off as someone of little importance at first, but that jump had proven him wrong. Hinata was different in almost every way imaginable. Over the last few months, he had become almost a constant in Tobio's life, like the sun. It had taken him this accident to learn that the other boy was essential to the structure of the team.

And essential to him, he realized. Without the annoying dumbass, who knows where he'd be right now. He was lucky to have the orange-haired idiot as a teammate, and maybe, just maybe, as a friend.

"You guys can see him, if you'd like, but one at a time please. It's so nice to see that Shouyou has so many people who care for him," Hinata's mother stepped out into the hallway, Natsu on her hip. Her long, orange hair was tied back in a single braid that swept over her shoulder. Kageyama got up and thanked her before heading into his teammate's darkened hospital room.

He had still not woken up, but he looked more peaceful than before. A bandage wrapped around his head, the white reflecting in the dim light. He pulled a chair next to the bed and set the tiger he had brought on a nearby table, sitting in silence for a few moments.

"Are we friends?" He wondered aloud. "Even with all I've said. You've defended me and trusted me over and over. Why?" No answer came. He sat in the darkness, trying to come up with an answer on his own.

The sheets on the cot next to him shifted. Kageyama's head snapped up. He rushed to his feet, hovering over the bed and searching for any sign of movement. A feeling of hope rose in him.

A pair of eyes opened in the darkness, hazily blinking in an attempt to clear them. Kageyama sighed with relief.

"Dumbass, do you know how worried we were about you? You said you'd be the one to defeat me, yet here you are in this bed," he scolded, but he couldn't hide the smile that was creeping onto his face.

A moment of silence passed as the ginger sat up, confused. He turned his head to Kageyama.

"I'm sorry, but who are you?"

* * *

Suga clapped a hand on Kageyama's shoulder, looking at the teen out of the of the corner of his eye.

"Don't get depressed, okay?" He told the other setter. Tobio wasn't panicking, but instead stood staring blankly at the wall of the hallway. Suga sighed. He couldn't tell if this was much better.

He heard hysteric sobs coming from further down the hallway. Hinata's mother was standing alongside her husband, speaking to the doctor.

He had developed amnesia, which apparently might have been a result of the surgery. They had no clue whether it was temporary or not. The gray-haired boy turned to the rest of his club. Noya was crying, mumbling to himself about how Hinata would never remember who his senpai's were. The team was a mess. Even Tsukishima glared at the ground, likely cursing in his head.

Kageyama wasn't depressed, or sad. He was angry. He had gone through denial, and now waves of outrage flowed through his body.

"Kageyama, come for a walk with your senpai," Tanaka stood up, grabbing the setter by the arm and practically dragging him down an unknown hall and in front of some windows.

"Look," he pointed through the glass, which led into another room. Newborns were swaddled in blankets, sleeping innocently. Their peaceful expressions painfully reminded him of how Shouyou had looked sleeping next to him on the bus. "Each and every one of them will grow up and live their lives at some point. They'll face hardship after hardship, yet they'll still push through, just like we will right now" He turned to Tobio.

"Hinata might just be the toughest of all of us. He never talks about it, but until now, he never had a serious team or coach, and was constantly being forced to defend himself and fight alone. None of us are alone anymore. He will get through this. So will you, and so will all of us."

It was strange, seeing the second-year so serious.

"I know you're angry. I am too. I want to do nothing but knock the crap out of that annoying doctor, but that won't do anything for Hinata. Every time I come here, I find my way down to the nursery just to remind myself how far I've come, and remember how far I have to go."

"It's not fair," Kageyama seethed. He would give anything to bring things back to normal, to be able to look over and see the idiot bouncing next to him. He would give anything to be annoyed, just one more time, by Hinata's constant jabbering and teasing.

There was nothing he wouldn't give to feel Hinata's radiating happiness, a feeling as warm as the sun.

"It's not fair," he repeated, quieter this time, clenching his teeth and glaring at the ground.

"I know. Now let's get back, the others are probably wondering where we are," Ryu sighed and stuffed his hands in his jacket pocket, walking off.

Kageyama took one last look at the infants before following after the elder boy.

This was just another challenge, another hardship. Hinata could overcome this. They all could.


	9. Chapter 9

A tall, tall wall loomed in front of the boy. It blocked his memories, keeping him from seeing the other side. They said his name was Hinata Shouyou. They said he was a volleyball player, which was surprising, considering his height.

He had a sister and a mom and dad who seemed nice enough, though he had no recollection of who they were. The woman had hair like his, the man had virtually the same smile. They kept telling stories of which he had no recollection of, asking him if he remembered any of them. Each time he said no, the look on the woman's face made him want to lie and say yes, he did remember.

Then there was that boy. Whenever he thought about him, he felt so close to remembering something, like he was so close to the top of that wall he could peek over.

Apparently he got hurt in an accident, hit his head or something of the sort. He spent the majority of his days sleeping or staring at the pile of gifts and stuffed animals he hadn't bothered to touch or look at since he woke up. He wanted to save that for the real Hinata Shouyou, not the impersonator he was. He wanted the real Shouyou to be able to see all of the people who cared for him and wished him the best and left him these presents.

He hadn't touched any of them, except for one. A tiger. His mom said that boy had brought it in, and that he had one just like it when he was younger. That one he slept with. It helped keep the fuzzy nightmares he kept having away, ones he felt he's had before but couldn't remember when.

It hadn't even been a day since he woke up, yet those few hours felt like an eternity to him. He wasn't allowed to read or look at screens or lights, so he sat with his supposed family in the darkness of the room, only ever leaving to use the bathroom.

"Excuse me, I have to use the restroom," he gently interrupted the woman, who had been in the middle of telling another story about the boy that was supposed to be him. He shuffled across the room with the aid of the man, clinging to his infusion pole. He turned and locked the door behind him. This room was dimly lit, just bright enough that he could see where he was going but not so bright that it triggered one of his headaches.

He looked in the mirror, staring at the stranger who looked back at him. Golden-brown eyes looked empty and confused. He traced the structure of his face with his fingertips, noticing how smooth his skin was. This was unlike his hair, which was wild and unique in its own way.

He noticed a fading, purple bruise on the side of his face. He must have gotten that either during or before the accident.

Something clicked. A vision of a ball slamming into his face, and a tall, thug-ish looking boy with brown hair apologizing profusely.

Just like that, it was gone, leaving him confused once more.

"As long as I'm here, you're invincible," he whispered to himself for no apparent reason. It was familiar, that phrase, though he couldn't put his finger on it. He sighed and limped back into his room and clambered stiffly onto his bed, tuning out his mother's story once more.

" _As long as I'm here, you're invincible,"_ he repeated mentally to himself.

"Okaasan?" He asked. "Could I see that boy that was in my room earlier?"

The team was practicing harder than before. Kageyama sent toss after toss, his fingertips turning red. Everyone was beginning to tire, yet no one was willing to stop for even a moment.

"Alright, break! You guys are going to pass out if you keep it up like this," Ukai called. Yachi and Kiyoko began handing out water bottles, the latter of the two shocked that Ryu and Noya accepted the ones she handed them without a word. She smiled fondly at them before turning and continuing.

"Kageyama," Takeda waved the setter over, holding his phone in his hand. "Apparently Hinata wants to see you at the hospital." He told the shocked teenager.

"Does he remember?" He asked, hopeful.

"Unfortunately no, but maybe if you speak to him you can help him," Takeda told Kageyama, smiling.

"I'll give you a ride, let's go," Ukai offered, putting a cigarette between his teeth and lighting it as they made their way to his car.

The ride to the hospital was a blur. Kageyama remembered the last few times he had been in this car. Ukai parked and the pair walked towards the door.

"Thank you very much, Ukai-sensei," Tobio said, earning him a grunt from his coach.

"It's nothing for Hinata, right?"

He gently knocked on the room's door, swallowing nervously. He didn't know what to expect. The door slid open and Hinata's mother welcomed him into the room, greeting him warmly. Kageyama looked towards the bed, where the small teen was propped up on several pillows, looking away from the door.

"Actually, Okaasan, would you mind giving us some privacy, please?" Hinata's voice asked. His family excused themselves from the room, leaving the two alone. A few seconds of silence passed before the boy turned to Kageyama, biting his lip.

"I'm… Hinata Shouyou," he said, but the statement sounded more like a question.

"Kageyama Tobio," he responded.

"Were we friends?" The other boy asked. Tobio wasn't sure how to answer that.

"Yes. No. I mean, maybe. We were teammates." He looked around the room, taking note of the untouched gifts and his tiger, which was sitting in the boy's lap.

"What was I like?"

"I'm not sure."

"How can you not be sure?"

"I don't know, dumba-" Kageyama cut himself short before he could say his usual nickname for the spiker.

"You were going to call me dumbass, weren't you?" The boy cocked his head to the side, a small grin shadowing his face.

"Do you remember?"

"Not really. It just seemed right. Did I have a girlfriend or anything?"

Kageyama nearly broke out in laughter. The question was so… Hinata.

"No, not that I know of, anyways."

They sat in silence for about a minute, Kageyama taking a seat in the chair by the door.

"As long as I'm here, you're invincible," he thought he heard the boy mumble. Were his ears deceiving him?

"What did you say?"

"As long as I'm here, you're invincible. It's the only thing I can remember." Hinata grabbed the tiger that was on his lap, squeezing it to his chest.

"I said that to you."

"Oh. What did you mean?"

"Your height and speed could basically be unstoppable as long as I sent you the right tosses."

"And?"

"Neither of us can be successful without the other, really."

"Can you come here for a second? I want to see your face better."

Kageyama felt his cheeks heat up but walked forwards anyways. If it would help Hinata remember something, anything, he would do it. This boy wasn't Hinata, wasn't the fast-talking idiot he knew. But he would get there eventually.

The teen's eyes scoured his face for a few seconds before turning away with a "hmp", burying his face in the tiger.

"What?" He demanded, confused.

"I'm trying to remember. Tell me a story."

Tobio was an awful storyteller. Well, truthfully, he was awful at socializing in general but this was worse. He began the story of how Hinata had served and it had hit him in the back of his head, and once that was finished, began talking about how they first met.

The small teen laughed easily, and all of the tension seemed to leave Kageyama's body. The giggle jingled throughout the room, warming the setter to his core. The visions of Hinata falling and seizing were slowly being buried in the back of his mind, forgotten.

Soon, a knock sounded at the door and a nurse came in to take Hinata back for more testing. The older teen groaned, but waved to Kageyama as he left, sending his trademark grin. Hesitantly, Tobio returned the gesture.

A genuine, gentle smile fell upon his lips.


	10. Chapter 10

Hi guys! It's been ten chapters since I started this, and this has almost a thousand views on here. That's kind of insane to me. Thank you guys so, so much for your comments and everything else. I'll be back with another update on Saturday. Onto the chapter!

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His day went by in waves. Some of it went well, other times, it went poorly. The constant stage of confusion he was in was overwhelming- he had woken up in a world with no recollection of who he was supposed to be or what his life was like. He almost wished that these people charading as his family would leave and give him some peace, give him some time to figure out what exactly was happening.

At the same time, he felt guilty. His mother had practically lost her child, who was now replaced with a stranger. Him. The only thing that he could fully comprehend or understand was his conversation with that boy earlier. Kageyama Tobio.

That, he could tell, was real.

The thought of the other boy felt like an anchor to him, keeping him grounded in the sea of uncertainty he was drowning in. Kageyama didn't try to make Hinata remember, unlike the others, instead letting him be as he was. He seemed to understand that Shouyou was now an entirely different person from what everyone remembered.

It was only when he was asked a question by his mother did he realize that he hadn't been paying attention to his family, tuning them out in favor of his own thoughts.

"I'm sorry, could you repeat that?" He asked, preparing to be scolded for not listening.

"Would you like to open your gifts yet?" She gently asked him. He shook his head and continued staring at the wall. Hearing stories about who he was supposed to be had tired him out and left him feeling raw. The constant reminder that he wasn't the person they had known and loved made him think that he was just a broken object, a person who could be tossed aside as if he were trash. A knock sounded at the door, disrupting his thoughts.

"Come in," his father called, a bit too loudly for Hinata's liking. His head started pounding, sending him into a downwards spiral of pain. His vision became hazy as rested his head back against his pillow.

"Ah, Kageyama-kun," he heard his mother greet the tall teenager. Her voice sounded distant. "Shouyou, we're going to go and get some dinner. Would you like anything to eat?" He tried to respond, but every time he opened his mouth a wave of dizziness surged over him.

"Is it happening again?" He heard her ask, shakily nodding in response. "I'll get the nurse, hold on for a second."

Kageyama watched from the side, unable to help as a nurse came in, wielding a syringe. The small boy in the bed shook in agony, clutching his head with his hands. The sight of his family immobilizing one of his arms and the needle piercing Hinata's delicate skin made him stop breathing for a moment.

Dots of crimson bubbled on the ginger's pale arm. The dream he had before flashed back into his memory, the sight of Hinata falling to the ground, flightless and limp. The noise of a skull being crushed against the floor echoed in his ears, the sight of a red river flowing freely from that head splashing in his vision.

"Breathe," he heard Suga's voice whisper in his head. In and out, he remembered. The entire ordeal was over as quickly as it started, Shouyou visibly relaxed in his bed, his mother stroking his halo-like hair and murmuring soothing words. He felt his heart clench for a moment, a quick pang of jealousy flashing through him. Seeing Hinata's family made him realize what he never had.

"Kageyama, could you please come back at a later time?" Hinata's father asked, his voice low.

"No, it's okay, he can stay. I'm fine, really." Shouyou breathed, his voice wavering. He weakly pushed himself back onto his elbow, failing to prop himself up and falling back onto his pillow. "Okaasan, tousan, please go get dinner. You haven't eaten all day." He attempted to convince his parents.

"Also, if anything happens I have the nurses and Kageyama here. Please, I'll be fine," he flashed a strained smile at them.

"Alright, we'll be back in a little bit. Call the nurses if you need anything," Hinata's mother sighed warily, waving as she picked up her daughter and left the room, her husband following her.

They shut the door behind them, leaving the two teens alone in the darkened room.

"Does that happen a lot?" Kageyama asked, pulling up a chair and taking a seat next to the bed. The rasping screech of the chair against the tile was the only sound that filled the room as the other boy remained silent for a moment. Tobio wondered if he had fallen asleep.

"Huh? Oh, I guess," Shouyou mumbled. Sweat matted his bangs to his forehead, clinging to his skin. His eyelids continually fluttered open and closed as he fought to stay awake.

"I'm sorry, I'm just really tired. Maybe you'd want to come back another time?" He sighed. "The painkillers normally make me really drowsy."

Kageyama glared at the teen in the bed, his normal scowl crossing over his face. "If you think I'm going to leave you alone without anyone to watch you, you must really be an idiot." He grumbled. Hinata laughed meekly at the lighthearted jab, fighting the call to rest.

"Go to sleep, Hinata," Tobio told him, pulling the thin fabric of the hospital sheets over the groggy boy. He sat down with a sigh, watching Hinata's gentle respirations as he was lulled to sleep.

"I think I remember… sleeping… your bed," the small teen murmured as he drifted off, his lithe body surrendering to the release sleep provided. In the dim light of the room, he able to make out what looked like the tiger he had bought pressed into Shouyou's side, nestled underneath his arm.

Kageyama leaned back in his chair, unsure of what to do. Next to him, he found a disassembled puzzle, one of Natsu's toys he assumed. Out of boredom, he reached for the pieces and began putting them together again, piece by piece.

It wasn't long before Hinata's parents returned. The boy was still napping peacefully, his mouth slightly open. Kageyama signaled with his hands, putting his finger to his lips and motioning to their son. Natsu clambered onto his lap, loudly whispering "Konnichiwa, Scary-san." and tugging on his cheeks. He had to admit, the little girl could be endearing at times.

Hinata's mother walked over, scolding her daughter with a hushed tone. She turned to Kageyama before rummaging through a plastic cafeteria bag she was holding and pulling out some yogurt, offering it to the setter. Instantly, he refused the offer but she smiled, shoved it into his hands, and ruffled his hair.

"Please accept this as a thanks for taking care of our Hinata," she thanked him, dipping her head slightly. "I would give you so much more but it's all we could find at the moment." Her son chose that moment to wake, sleepily blinking and turning his head to look at the various people in the room. Natsu reached out for his hand, smiling.

"Oniichan!" She hummed, grasping his thumb with her grubby fingers. "Do you want to play with me?" She bounced. Her brother smiled sadly at her.

"Gomen, Natsu. Maybe some other time?" he murmured. She turned around, not deterred in the least, and latched on to Kageyama.

"Scary-san can play with me, then," she laughed, climbing on his long leg. Hinata sleepily laughed at the scene. Natsu's mother made her way over to scold her daughter once more, before Kageyama shook his head.

"It's fine," he told her, peeling the little girl from his leg and sitting down on the cold hospital floor with her. She grabbed an array of markers, opening them and scribbling on Kageyama's hand before he could stop her. Once he heard Hinata's gentle chuckles, though, he gave in and let her color his palm.

Not long after this art-creating began, Ukai knocked on the door and entered quietly with the intention of bringing Kageyama back to the hotel.

"Oh, forgive me, we haven't been introduced yet," he laughed gently, tousling the blond mop of his hair. "I'm Keishin Ukai, your coach." He smiled at the confused boy, beckoning for his setter to follow him.

"Oh, Ukai-san," Hinata's mother spoke up, grabbing the store-owner's attention. "I was wondering if you could bring the rest of the team over tomorrow. I thought it might be good for Shouyou's memory."

"What? I can't, no," Hinata stuttered. All of the heads in the room turned to him.

"Shouyou, it might help you remember," his father calmly explained.

"Nothing's helped so far, how are you so sure this will work?" Hinata demanded, fearful tears in his eyes. He didn't think he would be able to handle the disappointment in so many strangers' faces once they realized that he wasn't the same Hinata they knew. Kageyama, he was comfortable with. Kageyama hadn't once worn the same, saddened expression as his mother or tried to make him remember or become the person he apparently used to be.

"It will, and that's final," his mother firmly decided. Shouyou bit his lip, clutching the tiger in his hands.

"Kageyama, let's go," Ukai opened the door and waited for the tall teen to walk through, leading him back to his car. Tobio took one last look at the hospital, fully confused by the feelings that were surging through his head.

When Hinata's mother had messed with his hair and gotten him food, something had been unlocked in him. A yearning. When Natsu had ran to him, something had tugged at his heart. A longing. He had wished for a family for so long that once he had seen the true, loving connections between his teammate's relatives, his ache for a pillar like theirs became more prominent.

He sighed and pulled his hands out of his pockets, opening the passenger door of his coach's car and sitting in silence for the remainder of the ride.

The two pulled into the hotel parking lot as the same time as the team's bus. Tobio mixed in with the other team members as they headed into the hotel. Tanaka vocalized his complaints about the cold, cursing at the wind. Tsukishima laughed under his breath and muttered about how he might be warmer if he actually had hair, earning a stifled laugh from Yamaguchi and a scowl from the second year.

"Hey, Kageyama. How's Hinata?" Daichi rumbled next to him, catching the setter a bit off guard.

"Oh, he seems fine. His memory isn't back yet," Kageyama curtly and respectfully responded.

"Kageyama! We're going to be having a team gathering in our room. Want to come?" Suga fell into stride next to him, his smile gleaming in the low light of the winter day. He was about to decline the polite offer when he felt his captain's eyes on the back of his head. Tobio stiffened and uttered a quick "yes" before briskly walking inside.

The "team gathering" could really be considered more of a party. Snacks were set out all around the room, though Tanaka and Nishinoya hogged the majority of the food. The team lounged around the floor and beds, Noya managing somehow to clamber up onto the windowsill and sit with his knees hugged to his chest. He wore an oversized navy hoodie he most likely stole from Asahi or Tanaka. With his hands lost somewhere in the long sleeves, he looked younger than he really was.

Kageyama took a seat in the corner of the room, sitting and keeping to himself as he watched his teammates interact. Over the past few days, they had been through ups and downs together. With his own struggles he had failed to notice the others as they coped with the sudden injury of their bright spiker.

He failed to notice the way Tsukishima sent semi-concerned glances at his back, ones people who didn't know him would mistake as malicious in intent. He was oblivious to the way Noya had continued to try his hardest to make the others laugh, keeping the constant tears he held back for when he was alone. He didn't see how Yachi and Kiyoko had been speaking to Hinata's parents, already starting a fundraiser for the monstrous hospital bills that would surely come out of their son's treatment.

Blinded with his own issues he couldn't see how Hinata's life wasn't the only one that had been shattered. His fellow teammates were left clutching to the broken shards of all that they knew, scrabbling to work together and piece the puzzle that was their lives back together.

Suga, Ennoshita, Yamaguchi, Takeda- everyone had blamed themselves for the accident, blamed themselves for Hinata's worsening condition, though perhaps the thought had plagued Tobio the most.

His attention snapped back to the party when he realized that Suga had dragged out a board game, one he had purchased from a store earlier that day.

"Monopoly?" He read, confused. He had never really played the game before, but had heard that it was extremely popular both in America and Japan.

"I call the dog!" Tanaka roared, reaching for the shiny marker before it was snatched away before his very eyes by none other than his team captain. A passionate fire burned in Daichi's eyes as he silently proclaimed himself the owner of the game piece. Other club members reached for various pieces until only one was left.

Suga picked it out of the box and turned to Kageyama, holding it out as an offering.

"Want to play?" He asked, pushing the toy into the other setter's hand before he could refuse. Tobio looked at the piece of metal that was growing warm in his palm. A large ship. He followed the lead of the other players and placed his marker at the start of the board, being dealt paper yen.

"I'm going to crush you all," Noya announced, grinning evilly as he joined the others crowding around the board. He sat in between Kageyama and Suga, the latter of which reached over to affectionately pat him on the head.

"We'll see about that," laughed the grey-haired setter. They began the game, Asahi rolling first. The dark-haired ace lightly dropped the die onto the board, moving his piece to its new location and purchasing the corresponding house.

"You call that a roll?" Demanded Tanaka. "Let me show you how it's done." He plucked the cube from the brightly colored map, exaggeratedly shaking it, his tongue sticking out of the corner of his mouth. He hurled the die at the ground, rolling a five.

"My number! Take that!" He pointed at the third year, who leaned backwards in fear and distanced himself from the wild second year.

"Tanaka," Chikara laughed. "You landed on Asahi's spot." The wing spiker payed his teammate the due amount and retreated from the board in shame, gloomily taking a seat on the bed and sighing with defeat.

"It's just a game," Tsukishima boredly huffed as he stepped up to take his turn, pushing his dark-rimmed glasses farther up on the thin ridge of his nose.

Kageyama did his best to keep up with the other players. The game seemed relatively easy to grasp, though he saw little point to playing it as it involved mainly chance rather than skill. In the end, the blond middle blocker won, prompting vocal complaints from Tanaka and accusations of cheating from others.

The team erupted in laughter when Nishinoya charged at the younger teen, only to bounce back and land on his rear.

Maybe it was the warm atmosphere, or maybe it was the constant stress he had been under for the past few days, but Tobio found a light, quiet laugh bubbling out of him. Instantly, his team paused in their tracks and looked at their younger setter, who stopped laughing immediately.

"Kageyama, was that you?" Tanaka marched over, peering down at the raven-haired teen, who panicked, believing that he had done something wrong.

"Sumimasen," he apologized to a silent room. Suddenly, his team burst back into laughter, tears forming in the eyes of Daichi as he fell onto his back, holding his stomach. Kageyama became even more confused and puzzled than before. They were laughing at him, and then they were going to reject him like his old team, weren't they?

"Kage… Kageyama," Suga wheezed in between laughs. He wiped the water from his eyes. "You don't have anything to apologize for. I just don't think we've ever heard you laugh before."

"Such a soft laugh… out of such a scary-looking person," roared Noya, hiding his face in the fabric of his hoodie.

"You should laugh more, it suits you," Yamaguchi giggled, covering his smile with his fingers. "Also, what's that on your hand?"

"Hinata's little sister drew this on me earlier." He opened his palm to reveal the irregular drawings of Natsu, which had become smudged through the course of the day. The room sobered up at the mention of their injured teammate, quickly turning solemn. Somewhere nearby a phone buzzed.

"It's mine," Daichi slowly got to his feet and picked his phone off of the dresser, the blue light from the screen sending a spotlight onto his face.

"Ukai wants us down in the lobby. Apparently we're going to go meet Hinata."

Kageyama remembered the look of terror and panic that had crossed the smaller boy's face earlier at the mention of meeting the team.

No matter what happened, they would help Hinata through it.


	11. Chapter 11

Hi all! I'm posting this a day early because I won't be home tomorrow, so this will be the last update of 2016. I have to say, I'm so grateful for all of your kind words of support and for all of you taking time out of your days to come on here and read this story. I hope your New Year's Eve is a great one, stay safe, and see you in 2017!

* * *

Unfamiliar faces surrounded him in the darkness of his room, blocking the faint light that creeped under the door from the hallway. They loomed over his small figure with sinister grins on their faces, calling out his name. He trembled, terrified.

The dark figures descended upon him, a flurry of fists grabbing and smacking him.

Shouyou awoke in a cold sweat, his hands clammy. His breathing was erratic, his heartbeat unsteady. Instantly, his father snapped awake and rushed over to his son, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder.

Hinata slapped that hand away. This man was a stranger, just like the ones in his dream. He didn't know who his family was, who he was, and who his friends were. He tried to breathe. He just had to believe that no one here was going to hurt him. He had to trust these strangers. It was all he could do.

The figures of strangers filed into his room. He looked at the ground, biting his cheek to distract the thoughts that were threatening to take over his mind like a parasite. The dream he had earlier had been eating at him like a disease, as if he were a host to these fearful worries.

These people were foreign to him. Their actions, their voices. He found himself struggling to calm himself as he pictured the ridiculously tall teenage beating him, pummeling his weak body. He didn't know them or what they were capable of.

"Hey," A familiar voice greeted. In the corner of his eye, he saw a pair of black fitted sweatpants and a dark jacket with "Karasuno Volleyball Club" printed on it. Kageyama. He looked into the blue eyes of the other teen, staring into the comfortable scowl of the teen and searching for any sign of malice or ill intent. When he saw none, he relaxed and turned to the others. His family was here. Kageyama was here. He had to trust them to protect him.

"I'm Hinata Shouyou, but you probably already know that," he hesitantly laughed, propping himself up on his pillows as well as he could. Moving around was a constant struggle with the IV in his arm, keeping his elbow stiff.

"I'm Sugawara Koushi, but you can call me Suga," A boy with grey hair and a brilliant, reassuring smile stepped forwards. He looked kindly at Hinata, an emotion hidden in his hazel eyes. Sadness.

It was similar to the look look Kageyama wore whenever he set foot in his hospital room. Guilt.

The grey haired boy looped an arm around the sturdy shoulders another teen, who held himself up proudly. He had short-cropped brown hair and a gentle smile on his face.

"This is Daichi Sawamura, but everyone calls him Daichi. He's our captain." That would explain the air of respect carried around him.

"Suga, I can introduce myself," the boy laughed, the deep baritone of his voice filling the room. A smaller teammate with wide eyes grinned and pushed to the front of the others. From what Hinata could tell he looked to be even shorter than him, something he didn't think was possible.

"My name's Nishinoya. I'm a second year and the team's libero." Libero? The term sounded vaguely familiar, though he couldn't quite remember where it was from. The teen's hair was spiked up, the front of it dyed a light blond.

The other team members introduced themselves, Hinata struggling to remember all of their names. Finally, two girls found their way through the mass of volleyball players. One of them held herself calmly, sending a benevolent smile in his direction.

"I'm Kiyoko Shimizu. I'm the third-year manager of the team." She nudged the other girl, a blond underclassman who was trembling.

"I-I'm Yachi! Hitoka Yachi," she squeaked out, clearly nervous to be in front of Hinata. She reminded him of himself in a way, not that he really knew who he was.

"Hi, Yachi-san," he greeted the other manager with a weak smile in an attempt to calm her.

"Ah, just Yachi is fine," she mumbled, turning red.

Meeting so many people at once hadn't actually turned out to be that bad, although it didn't help him remember anything about the boy he was supposed to be. They didn't push him to remember his previous life, however, unlike his family had before. They told stories and laughed amongst themselves. It was clear that the team was a family in itself.

From what Hinata could tell, it seemed that they accepted him for who he was at the moment, not who he was in his past.

The nearly-bald boy who had introduced himself as Tanaka had pointed to the ever-growing pile of presents in the corner of his room.

"You aren't going to touch your gifts?" He asked.

"No, I want to save that for when I remember, when the real Hinata Shouyou remembers," he tried to explain his thought process as best he could. He knew that the gifts from the people he barely knew would do little for him. He wanted to let the boy he was supposed to be experience that.

Tanaka cocked his head to the side, quizzically looking at the boy in the bed.

"What do you mean? You're the real Hinata Shouyou. What else would you be?" With that, he reached over and plucked a bag from the pile and dropped it on Hinata's lap, standing expectantly by his bedside.

Hinata reached in and pulled out a box of orange-flavored pocky. His younger sister climbed from her mother's lap onto his bed, grabbing the box with her tiny hands.

"It matches niisan's hair!" she laughed, plopping down next to the boy and gracelessly ripping open the package, attempting to stuff a piece of the coated biscuit into her brother's mouth before she was pulled down by her mother.

They went through the rest of the gifts, most of which were stuffed animals, manga books, or assorted snacks. One from a boy named Kenma, who apparently wasn't on his team, was an interesting-looking video game he would try when he left the hospital. For now, he couldn't read, look at screens, or even be in the presence of bright light without triggering one of his headaches.

The rest of the visit began to drag on, and his energy wore down to the point where he felt like if he closed his eyes he would nod off. Kageyama recognized this and stood up, quietly ushering his teammates out the door.

"We should get back to the hotel," he excused them from the room, hesitantly holding a hand up in goodbye as they left, receiving an exhausted smile from his hospitalized teammate.

"Come back soon," his mother said after them. She closed the door and sat on the bed next to her son, quietly running a soothing hand through his soft hair, lulling him farther to sleep. "That wasn't so bad, huh?" She murmured. Hinata's eyes closed and his lips parted as he fell farther under the spell of fatigue, breathing an inaudible response.

And just like that, he was in the clutches of his dreams.

* * *

This might be my last update for a while, I have finals coming up so I'm not sure if I'll have another chapter ready by Wednesday. I apologize in advance, and thank you so much for being patient with me.

Happy New Year!


	12. Chapter 12

Hey all! I know I haven't updated in a bit, and I'm truly sorry for that. I had finals last week which actually went better than I had expected. Anyways, enjoy this chapter and thanks for reading!

Practice the next day went as normally as it could without Karasuno's number ten. The team's spirits had lifted considerably since he had awoken, now looking to the future with the hope that he would soon regain his memory.

For the first time since he and Hinata had found themselves on the same team he joined the rest of the group for their warm-ups instead of going against the spiker.

Kageyama nimbly reached out and grasped his heels, bending forwards and bringing his chest to his knees. As he stretched, he was dimly aware of someone who had taken a seat next to him, half-heartedly completing the exercises. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the familiar pudding-headed setter from Nekoma. They sat in silence, content to listen to the others fill the gap of quiet with their own chatter.

"Where's that tall blocker?" Tanaka asked, reaching for his toes. His tongue stuck out in effort as he struggled to grasp his feet.

"Oh, Lev?" Kuroo asked. "He's normally late for practice. He's probably waiting to make some sort of grand entrance-"

"Haiba Lev has arrived!" A peppy voice called out. Heads swiveled in the direction of the gym doors, Nekoma's team members staring exasperatedly at the towering player who had a cat clutched in his arms. It looked rather comfortable in his grasp, allowing the blocker to stroke it's thick orange fur. Lev put it down and let it wander between the teens as he ran to join his team.

"Geez, it's almost like that was scripted," muttered Yaku, laughing along with Suga at Lev as he awkwardly folded himself down and joined the rest of the players in their stretches.

"Does this happen alot?" Asked Kageyama, a little annoyed at the half-Russian teen. In a way, Nekoma's blocker reminded him of Hinata.

"Yeah," sighed Kenma. He reached out a hand for the orange tabby as it passed him, letting it rub against his palm.

Tobio stiffened when the cat approached him. He had never been good with animals; they just never seemed to like him. Hinata, on the other hand, was a magnet for all sorts of cats and dogs. What would Shoyo do in this situation?

Before he could think any further, the cat jumped onto his lap and purred. Kageyama stifled the urge to jump back, nervously freezing as the tabby curled up on his legs. The others finished their warm-ups and laughed at the look of shock on his face.

He turned around to Yachi, forced to stay on the ground because of the animal who had taken to him.

"What do I do?" he hissed.

"Here," she reached over and gracefully plucked the cat from his lap, cradling it in her arms. "I'll take him back outside."

Kageyama let out a relieved breath, brushing the fur off of him and heading over to the net. The past few days had been full of changes and surprises, he wasn't sure what else would come his way anymore.

"Alright! Let's play a practice match," Ukai called out, setting up a chair next to Takeda.

Kageyama's eyes focused on the other team. The ball came to his side of the court, an easy serve by Kenma. Nekoma already had Tanaka and Tsukishima marked, there was no way their spikes would get through. Asahi.

He tossed backwards to the ace, the noise of the third year's palm against the ball letting him know he had made his mark. Then came the smack of the volleyball against the gym floor. Denied. Kuroo and Lev stood grinning at him, their arms still up above their heads.

Toss after toss, he watched the ball get shut down by Nekoma's block. It was one thing when the opposing team's spikers scored a point, but when his tosses were rejected…

"My, my, getting frustrated, aren't we?" Lev taunted, all one-hundred ninety-four centimeters of him towering over Kageyama. "Maybe you should take a break on the bench?"

The bench. That's right, if his tosses weren't good enough, he would get benched. If his teammates couldn't trust him to make the right calls, he would get benched. Just like his last team, if he wasn't good enough, he would get tossed aside.

It was only when Daichi clapped a hand on his shoulder that he realized he was on edge, every muscle in his body taut as if it were about to snap.

"It doesn't matter how tall or strong your wall is, we'll break through it!" Karasuno's captain bravely announced, intensely locking eyes with Kuroo in an attempt to get the other teen to back down. The other captain grinned, slyly turning around and motioning to his teammates.

"We'll see about that," he laughed.

The next play went into motion. Asahi sent a ball catapulting over the net with his jump serve. It smashed into their libero's arm, rocketing into the air. Lev jumped up and bumped it to the other side. Noya dove for it, his palm saving it from the gym floor.

"Kageyama!" He cried, jumping back up to his feet. Tobio positioned himself under the ball. If he messed this up, his team would reject him just as his team at Kitagawa Daiichi had. He tossed to Tanaka, the ball sailing off of his fingertips towards the spiker.

Suddenly, Kuroo was their, his arm stretched above the net. The spike was halted in its path. The ball was falling, crashing right before Kageyama's eyes. He reached out. The image of Hinata, limp, flashed in his mind. If he was one second, one moment too late…

The ball thudded on the ground, the sound empty and hollow.

"Too bad, maybe if the shrimp was here the ball would have made it," he heard the distant voice of Lev echo in his ears.

"Alright, break!" Ukai called. The team ran towards their coach, leaving Kageyama staring at the ball. He turned towards the group and walked over, preparing himself to be scolded, preparing to face the disappointment, the rejection. He readied himself to face the reality that he had become worthless to the team. His stomach sank as he set his expression as solid and emotionless as stone.

"So by now we know that those Nekoma blockers are a force in themselves, especially with that giant first-year. That's okay, we'll wear them down eventually." Ukai paused.

"Suga," he started. Kageyama prepared himself. They were going to switch him out. "I want you to switch with Tsukishima. Let's see if we can confuse them with two setters."

Relief flooded through him as he realized he would be able to stay on the court. They headed back, taking formation once more.

"Kageyama," Suga grabbed his attention. "Let's do this"

"Yeah," he said, determination flooding through him.


End file.
